Darius Garland scores 24 points as the Cavaliers defeat the Raptors 105-102

Nov 26, 2023 | 7:43 PM

CLEVELAND (AP) — Darius Garland had 24 points and eight assists and Max Strus scored his 20 points in the third quarter, helping the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 105-102 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night.

The Cavaliers took their largest lead at 89-77 early in the fourth quarter on a 3-pointer by Garland. Dennis Schroder countered with a 3-pointer that pulled Toronto within 103-102. Schroeder scored seven of his 15 points in the final 95 seconds.

After Donovan Mitchell made two free throws to extend Cleveland’s advantage to 105-102 with 10 seconds remaining, Gary Trent Jr. stepped out of bounds in the corner before getting off a potential tying shot, and the Cavaliers ran out the final ticks.

Strus added 11 rebounds and five assists. Jarrett Allen scored 18 points and Evan Mobley had 12 points and 14 rebounds for Cleveland, which is 1-2 on its five-game homestand. The Cavaliers lost to the Lakers 121-115 on Saturday night.

Raptors centre Jakob Poeltl set season highs of 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Pascal Siakam had 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Scottie Barnes had 15 points and eight rebounds as Toronto fell to 1-5 on the road against Eastern Conference teams.

Garland, who sat out the second half of the game against the Lakers with a neck strain caused by an awkward collision with Max Christie, played a game-high 41 minutes. Mitchell scored 10 points on 4-of-17 shooting and missed all five of his 3-point attempts.

Trent scored 11 points in 14 minutes off the bench in the first half, helping Toronto build a 52-42 advantage. Garland had 15 points and Allen scored 12.

Cleveland did not commit a foul in the first quarter, preventing Toronto from making its first free throw until midway through the second. The Cavaliers attempted one foul shot in the first 29 minutes.

UP NEXT

Raptors: Visit Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night.

Cavaliers: Host Atlanta Hawks in an In-Season Tournament game on Tuesday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Brian Dulik, The Associated Press