Cleveland, OH (92.3 The Fan) – Collin Sexton made two three-pointers in crunch time and the Cavaliers beat the Pistons 126-119 on Monday night.
Young Bull seeing red!Collin Sexton ties @MrCavalier34's @cavs rookie mark with his 6th straight game of 23+ points. #BeTheFight pic.twitter.com/inF71xAicu
— FOX Sports Ohio (@FOXSportsOH) March 19, 2019
Seven players scored 10 or more points, including Jordan Clarkson, Nik Stauskas and Marquese Chriss off the bench. The Cavaliers played their small lineup for most of the game due to injuries. That allowed Detroit center Andre Drummond to dominate. He finished with 21 points, 21 rebounds and five assists.
The Cavs were resilient, despite being shorthanded. They trailed by 11 early in the second quarter, but rallied and went into halftime trailing 61-60.
Cleveland was without Kevin Love, who suffered a lower back contusion during Saturday night's game against Dallas. Tristan Thompson, Larry Nance Jr., and Matthew Dellavedova were also out. Blake Griffin didn't play for Detroit due to rest.
The Streak Continues – Collin Sexton extended his streak of scoring 20 or more points to six games. The rookie finished with 27 points. He had a few beautiful finishes at the rim and found Cedi Osman with a gorgeous pass in transition:
This is just beautiful.#BeTheFight pic.twitter.com/EyFtKlChBO
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) March 19, 2019Sexton, 20, is playing with confidence and swagger. He looks comfortable on the court and it's showing up in the box score. He answered the call with the game on the line. Love wasn't there to lean on. The rookie had to step up and he did just that.
Double-Double – Chriss finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, registering his first double-double of the season and ninth of his career. The 21-year-old has shown flashes since the Cavs acquired him at the trade deadline. It'll be interesting to see how many teams are interested in him this summer when he hits free agency.
Team Effort – Osman finished with 21 points. Brandon Knight had 16 points and David Nwaba finished with 13. The Cavs beat a Pistons team that was sixth in the Eastern Conference standings prior to the game.
Cleveland had lost 5 of their last six games prior to the win. They only have 11 games left and hope to finished strong.
Up Next – The Cavs play the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night at The Q.
