Evan Mobley had 22 points and 11 rebounds and Darius Garland added 20 points and nine assists to lead the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers to their franchise-record 16th consecutive victory, a 133-124 win Friday over the Memphis Grizzlies.
The Cavaliers, the NBA’s best team with a 56-10 record, also won their 11th straight road game.
De’Andre Hunter contributed 18 points and five rebounds and Jarrett Allen had 16 points and six boards for Cleveland, which narrowly outshot Memphis from the field (50 percent to 49.5 percent).
Ja Morant finished with a season-high 44 points for the Grizzlies, who had their four-game winning streak snapped. Morant made 17-of-22 shots from the field and added eight rebounds and seven assists. Jaren Jackson Jr. returned after missing five games with a sprained left ankle and had 13 points, four steals and two blocks. Brandon Clarke had 13 points and five boards.
Cleveland, which won for the 19th time in 20 games, played its second straight without leading scorer Donovan Mitchell, who was sidelined with a groin injury.
The Cavaliers are in the midst of their third winning streak of 12 or more games this season. They opened the season by winning their first 15 games.
Against the Grizzlies, the Cavaliers put the game away early. They led by 17 at the half and by 25 late in the third quarter. Memphis got to within 13 (114-101) following a fastbreak layup by Morant early in the fourth quarter that capped a 9-2 run.
The Cavaliers quickly recovered after a timeout. They got 3-pointers from Sam Merrill and Javonte Green and a dunk by Mobley to go up 122-103 with 6:41 left. Playing its reserves, Memphis made one last run and cut the deficit to eight (130-122) with 52 seconds remaining.
The Cavaliers wasted little time getting on top of the Grizzlies.
They pieced together an 18-5 run covering the final minutes of the first quarter and the opening minutes of the second. The stretch included five straight 3-pointers – including three by Mobley — that allowed the Cavaliers to build a 42-29 lead. They maintained a double-digit advantage the rest of the first half, pushing it to 19 (68-49) with 4:11 to go.
Cleveland led 75-58 at halftime behind 12 3-pointers and 52.9 percent shooting. Morant had 26 points at the break for Memphis.
-Field Level Media
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