Cleveland, OH (92.3 The Fan) – The Cavaliers said things would be different on Sunday, following an ugly loss to Detroit and they were right. Cleveland dominated the fourth quarter en route to a 107-93 win over Orlando.
"We needed it big time," David Nwaba said. "Last night was a rough one for us, so for us to get the majority of the squad back and bounce back like that was big time."
The Cavaliers made seven threes in the final quarter to get the win. Jordan Clarkson led the Cavs with 18 points off the bench. Rookie Collin Sexton finished with 17 points.
Responding to Adversity – The Cavs shot 25 percent from the field in the third quarter. Orlando outscored them by nine to take a five-point lead into the fourth. The Cavs responded by scoring 10-straight to start the fourth quarter. Kevin Love had a bad shooting day, but hit two critical threes to give the Cavaliers the lead for good. Cleveland made 17-of-19 free throws in the fourth quarter, which helped propel them to victory.
"It wasn't our prettiest basketball," Love said. "We slipped up a little bit on the defensive end, but we were able to get stops when we needed to – we still need to get better on that end. Offensively, I felt we really moved the ball well and as Chris said we've been shooting the ball well from three."
Hot Streak – The Cavs have won five of their last eight games and have posted a 7-7 record in their last 14 contests. Love’s return has helped spark this team down the stretch. The Cavaliers knocked off an Orlando team that is in the hunt for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Bench Mob – The Cavaliers' bench outscored the Magic 47-13. Matthew Dellavedova finished with 11 points. Nwaba had a few big plays defensively, including a steal and a lay-up at the end of the third quarter the cut Orlando's lead to five.
Love's still an All-Star – There aren't many players on the planet who shoot 3-of-11 from the field and still finish with 16 points and 14 rebounds. People will mention his injury history, his contract and past failures, but Love is reminding everyone of how great he can be when he is healthy.
"We're a young team, we're going to lose some games, but hopefully we can find our way and how to win so next year we start off on a good foot," Love said. "I think that's very, very important for these guys."
Up Next – The Cavaliers are on the road this week. They travel to Brooklyn to play the Nets on Wednesday, before playing in Miami on Friday night.
