CLEVELAND, Ohio — Guess the Cavs didn’t get their mojo back.
About 24 hours after a feel-good come-from-behind win, the undermanned Cavs couldn’t repeat it Saturday night, losing to the equally depleted Golden State Warriors, 99-94, inside Rocket Arena. It’s Cleveland’s fifth loss in the last seven games.
“It’s deflating when you’re missing shots. I don’t know who would be joyful in that situation,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. “It’s just tough. I think we kept it together on the bench and encouraging and keep competing. I thought we were trying, were fighting. It’s like we could not get over the hump.
“Give the Warriors a ton of credit. They came in there with a fresh, young group that had a lot of energy. They really got after it. We were definitely fatigued. It just is what it is. Now, in the NBA you got to overcome that, right? You got to find another way, and we didn’t tonight.”
Playing their fifth game in seven nights, after expending so much energy rallying one night earlier against San Antonio, the Cavs got off to a horrendous start.
Both teams did.
That hideous first half mercifully came to a close with the frigid Cavs trailing 45-36 — a more respectable deficit thanks to Donovan Mitchell’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the second quarter.
In the first 24 minutes, Cleveland shot just 14 of 52 (26.9%) from the field and 3 of 21 (14.3%) from 3-point range.
It didn’t get much better in the second half.
After the Warriors built a game-high 14-point lead at the 4:04 mark of the third quarter, Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson angrily called timeout. As the team slowly walked back to the bench, they were greeted with boisterous boos — the second time in the last three games they have been heckled at home.
Despite clearly not being at their best, the Cavs kept battling. They pulled within six at the 10:21 mark. About two minutes later, it was a one-possession game, temporarily turning those jeers into roars.
But Warriors two-way guard Pat Spencer went on a personal 8-0 run to increase the Golden State lead back to 11 points midway through the fourth quarter. Following his third bucket in that gutsy stretch, the animated Spencer stood near center court, pounded his chest multiple times and yelled toward the crowd, as the Cavs signaled for another timeout to regroup.
They did, trimming the Golden State advantage to just six with 3:11 left. It was a three-point game with under two minutes remaining.
The Cavs had a few more chances to pull closer in the final seconds.
Point guard Darius Garland split a pair of free throws with 20.9 left, making the margin two. Then Golden State reserve Gui Santos made one of two from the stripe, giving Cleveland the shot it wanted.
Following a timeout in which Atkinson drew up a play for Mitchell, the inbounds pass found the Cavaliers’ streaking star in front of the team’s bench.
He gathered and hoisted a high-arching triple that bounced off the rim.
No comeback this time.
So much for that joy they supposedly found the last few days. Mitchell was left dejectedly walking off the court.
Again.
His game-high 29 points weren’t enough.
“We’re gonna figure it out one day,” Mitchell said. “Can’t keep getting in this position. Shouldn’t come down to it. All due respect and credit to them, but the consistent thing is we get down and then we start playing. There’s no switch to flip. Until there’s a change in that, we’re going to keep being in these positions where sometimes we do, sometimes we don’t, and we have to fix it.”
Evan Mobley added 18 points and 10 rebounds. Garland chipped in with 17 despite shooting just 6 of 15 from the field and 1 of 6 from beyond the arc.
“Just gotta bring some spirit, some energy to the games for 48 minutes,” Garland explained. “It’s fixable.”
The plucky Warriors were led by Spencer who finished with 19 points. It’s his third consecutive game with 15 or more points. He also hit a career-high three triples.
Santos tallied 14 points off the bench. Buddy Hield had 13.
For the game, Cleveland shot 34.6%, including 23.8% from deep. It had just 15 assists on 37 makes.
“Until we decide on a consistent basis to be that group, we’re going to run into inconsistency,” Mitchell said. “We do it in spurts, and that’s what’s rough.”
Given the deep-rooted ties between these two organizations — no longer just because of their Finals history — Cavs-Warriors is basically the Spider-Man meme.
Atkinson, a Steve Kerr protege. Elements of Cleveland’s system taken from those days in Golden State. And, on Saturday night, two teams nowhere close to full strength.
The Cavs were without six regulars — Lonzo Ball (injury management), Jarrett Allen (strained finger), Larry Nance Jr. (calf strain), Sam Merrill (right hand sprain), Max Strus (foot surgery) and Tyrese Proctor (personal reasons).
Golden State didn’t have Stephen Curry (quad contusion), Jimmy Butler (injury management), Draymond Green (foot sprain), Seth Curry (toe soreness) or De’Anthony Melton (injury management).
It was ugly. It was low scoring. It felt like a game from a different era.
The teacher got the best of the student.
The good vibes lasted one night.
“We need a reset right now to rest our bodies and get our principles,” Atkinson admitted. “You always take lessons from struggles.”
Up next
The Cavs will have nearly a week off before returning to game action, traveling to Washington, D.C., for a matchup with the Wizards on Friday night. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
