De’Andre Hunter scored a team-high 23 points off the bench, helping lead the Atlanta Hawks to a 117-101 victory over the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers in NBA Cup play on Friday.
Trae Young added 21 points and 11 assists for Atlanta, which beat Cleveland for the second straight game. Jalen Johnson chipped in 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for the Hawks, who need the Boston Celtics to beat the Chicago Bulls on Friday night for Atlanta to clinch the East Group C title.
Onyeka Okongwu scored 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds, Zaccharie Risacher had 11 points and Bogdan Bogdanovic tallied 10 points. Clint Capela added eight points and a team-high 13 boards.
Darius Garland paced Cleveland with 29 points while Evan Mobley had 24 points and 12 rebounds. Donovan Mitchell chipped in 12 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, but shot just 5-for-23 from the field. The Cavaliers have dropped three of five since starting 15-0.
Leading 52-50 at halftime, Atlanta saw its lead climb to 12 — its largest to that point — as Capela and Johnson’s back-to-back baskets forced a Cleveland timeout with 6:06 left in the third.
After Mobley’s free throws trimmed the Cavaliers’ deficit to 82-71 at the 2:06 mark, the Hawks extended their advantage with a 9-0 run — including Okongwu’s three baskets — for a 91-71 lead.
With 6:04 remaining, Young’s fadeaway 3-pointer expanded Atlanta’s lead to 104-86, but a 6-0 Cavaliers’ run prompted a Hawks timeout at the 4:53 mark.
Mobley’s dunk cut the lead to 107-96, before Dyson Daniels’ shot clock-beating 3-pointer with 2:56 all but iced Atlanta’s win.
Atlanta turned the ball over five times in the first four minutes, forcing a Hawks timeout after Mitchell’s steal led to Mobley’s dunk, giving Cleveland a 16-8 lead.
Atlanta answered with a 21-11 run to finish the opening quarter, including Johnson’s triple that put Atlanta ahead 29-27.
After Mobley’s dunk cut Cleveland’s deficit to 41-38, Hunter’s 3-pointer and Johnson’s fastbreak slam forced a Cavaliers’ timeout with 3:03 left in the half.
Young’s floater extended the Hawks’ lead to 10 before Mitchell’s 3-pointer snapped his 0-for-10 shooting start from the field.
Trailing 52-41, Mitchell knocked down another triple before Garland’s back-to-back 3-pointers trimmed Atlanta’s halftime lead to two.
–Field Level Media
