CLEVELAND – The Cavaliers returned home Thursday night after losing two in row on a three-game road trip and defeated the Milwaukee Bucks in convincing fashion 115-100.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the way for the Bucks early, scoring 12 points in the first quarter, but thanks to a spark from Cavaliers forward James Jones, who put up eight points in the first, the Cavs led at the end of one 28-23.
Matthew Dellavedova had an exceptional night filling in at starting point guard for Mo Williams, who was out with a leg injury. Delly dished out nine assists in the first half. He finished with a career-high with 13 assists on the night.
The Cavs offense erupted in the second quarter, outscoring Milwaukee 35-25 and entered halftime with a 63-48 lead.
Kevin Love led the way in scoring with 17 points in the first half. Love would finish with 22 points and 15 rebounds, posting his eighth double double of the season.
Cleveland kept the energy up right out of the gate in the second half and LeBron James put up nine of his 27 total points in the third quarter.
J.R. Smith had one of his best games of the season going four for eight from three-point range, scoring a season-high 18 points.
The Bucks fought back late in the quarter, cutting the deficit down to five with half a minute to play in the third, but the Cavs would enter the fourth quarter leading 86-79.
The Cavs came out in the fourth quarter and built the lead back up to 13 with just over eight minutes to play. Cleveland would maintain control the rest of the way and close out the game, winning 115-100.
Not much was going offensively for Milwaukee aside from Antetokounmpo, who scored a career-high 33 points on 12 of 15 shooting.
The Cavaliers bench played a significant role in the win, combining for 39 of the Cavs 110 points. Milwaukee’s bench only scored 12 points on the night.
One pleasant sight for Cavs fans off the bench was Anderson Varejao, who had his most productive game in a long time in Cleveland. Varejao scored nine points on four of four shooting in eleven minutes and after the game he told reporters, “I’m not 100 percent, but I’m getting better every day.”
Cleveland outrebounded Milwaukee 43-22 as Love and Tristan Thompson, who played in his 300th straight game, both rebounded in double digits, Thompson hauling in 11 on the night.
The Cavs improve to 9-3 on the season and face the Atlanta Hawks Saturday night at the Q.
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