Balanced attack helps Cavaliers hold off Spurs

Jarrett Allen scored 29 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and Darius Garland produced five key points in the final 1:16 as the host Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the San Antonio Spurs 124-116 on Thursday.

The Cavaliers (59-14) led by five points at halftime and by three after three quarters. San Antonio went up 104-102 on Stephon Castle's 3-pointer with 6:25 to play before Cleveland answered, reeling off the ensuing nine points and never trailing again.

The Spurs (31-41) got within 117-114 when Harrison Barnes scored on a layup with 1:41 remaining. That's when Garland took charge, hitting a 3-pointer and then a finger=roll layup to give Cleveland the cushion it needed to finish off the win.

Donovan Mitchell added 25 points, 14 assists and eight rebounds for Cleveland, which has won three straight games. Max Strus scored 18 points, De'Andre Hunter had 14, Sam Merrill hit for 13 and Garland finished with 10 points despite shooting 4-for-15 from the floor.

Castle led San Antonio with 22 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Devin Vassell also had 22 points, Keldon Johnson racked up 17 points and 10 rebounds, Julian Champagnie hit for 16 points and Jeremy Sochan scored 13 for the Spurs, who have dropped two games in a row.

Cleveland had a 30-24 advantage after 12 minutes of play and built on its momentum through the first minutes of the second quarter, with Mitchell's 3-pointer pushing the margin to 46-30. San Antonio swung back, closing within 50-47 on Jeremy Sochan's running layup with 50.3 seconds to play in the half. Cleveland led 54-49 at the break despite committing 10 turnovers.

Mitchell led all scorers with 15 points before halftime, the lone player on either team in double figures.

San Antonio surged in front at 81-79 when Vassell canned a pair of free throws with 1:47 to play in the third quarter. The Cavaliers got the best of the final minutes of the period, as five points by Merrill and a dunk by Mitchell, the latter with 16 seconds left, granted them a 86-83 lead heading to the fourth period.

--Field Level Media