Cavaliers struggle early, fall to Jazz 115-99

By AP
Published

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 24 points, Rudy Gobert had 19 points and 15 rebounds and the Utah Jazz cruised to a 115-99 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night.

Royce O'Neale added 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Derrick Favors had 12 points and 10 rebounds in Utah's sixth straight win and eighth in nine games.

Ante Zizic and Collin Sexton each scored 15 points, while Cameron Payne had 14 to lead the Cavaliers.

Cleveland shot just 21 of 68 (.309) from the field over the first three quarters, allowing the Jazz to pull away early.

The Cavaliers took their only lead at 7-6 when Cedi Osman stole a pass from Jae Crowder and set Sexton up for a layup. Utah took the lead for good on back-to-back 3-pointers from Mitchell and O'Neale that sparked a 12-4 run. Gobert finished it off with a dunk off a lob pass from Mitchell, giving Utah an 18-11 lead.

The Cavaliers closed within two at 20-18 on a pair of free throws from Payne. Utah then got going from the perimeter near the end of the first quarter and put the game out of reach.

Joe Ingles, Crowder, Kyle Korver, and Grayson Allen rattled off four 3-pointers over four straight possessions spanning the first and second quarters. Their outside baskets gave the Jazz a 32-20 lead. It sparked a second quarter during which Utah hit 12 of 20 shots and held Cleveland to just five total baskets. The Jazz capped it with back-to-back baskets from Gobert and O'Neale to take a 61-37 halftime lead.

The Cavaliers could not keep up with the Jazz after missing their first 12 3-point shot attempts. They didn't score an outside basket until Jordan Clarkson knocked one down with 1:34 left before halftime.

Utah didn't ease up after halftime, extending its lead to as many as 38 points in the third quarter, going up 87-49 on another 3-pointer from Crowder.

TIP INS

Cavaliers: Tristan Thompson did not play because of left foot soreness. ... Cleveland scored 19 points off 19 Jazz turnovers. ... Alec Burks and Rodney Hood combined for 10 points on 4-of-17 shooting from the field in their first game back in Utah since being traded by the Jazz.
























Jazz: Mitchell is averaging 29.0 points per game over his last eight games and has scored at least 24 points in each contest. ... Ingles totaled a team-high eight assists. He has led Utah in assists 21 times this season. ... Gobert collected his seventh straight double-double. He's averaging 16.1 points and 17.9 rebounds over those contests.

UP NEXT

Cavaliers: visit the Nuggets on Saturday.

Jazz: host the Trail Blazers on Monday.