Evan Mobley #4 of the Cleveland Cavaliers dunks during the third quarter against the Toronto Raptors at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on March 06, 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavaliers defeated the Raptors 104-96. Jason Miller/Getty Images/AFP
Lauri Markkanen had 22 points and 12 rebounds and Evan Mobley added 20 points and 17 rebounds to help the Cleveland Cavaliers snap a three-game losing streak with a 104-96 victory over the visiting Toronto Raptors.
Cleveland had five players score in double figures, including Darius Garland with 17 points and a game-high 10 assists, Cedi Osman with 17 points and Kevin Love with 15 points and nine rebounds. Mobley, a rookie, added four assists and three blocks.
The rook cannot be denied!#BIGSAppreciationDay | #LetEmKnow pic.twitter.com/YMsLVrumeG
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) March 7, 2022
The Cavs had 17 turnovers, which kept the Raptors close. Garland had seven turnovers, equal to Toronto’s entire team total.
The Cavs’ bench outscored Toronto 37-8.
Sixth-place Cleveland now has a three-game lead over the seventh-place Raptors in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
It was a bittersweet win for the Cavs, who lost All-Star center Jarrett Allen to a bruised left quadriceps in the first quarter. It’s unsure if he’ll miss any time for the Cavs, who will embark on a three-game road streak starting Tuesday in Indiana.
Pascal Siakam had a game-high 24 points for Toronto, which also got 21 points from Chris Boucher. Gary Trent added 19 points and Scottie Barnes had 19 points and 12 rebounds.
Barnes, forced into playing the point because of injuries to Fred VanFleet (sore knee) and Malachi Flynn (hamstring), went all game without committing a turnover.
The Cavs had lost six of their last seven heading into Sunday’s game. They have now won all three meetings this season against Toronto.
The Raptors started the second half on a 15-3 run to get right back in the game. Trent’s basket trimmed the Cavs’ lead to 62-61.
The Cavs recovered, though, and embarked on an 11-1 tear to grab a 73-62 lead after three quarters. Toronto was held without a field goal on its last 12 possessions of the third quarter.
Markkanen fired in 18 points and had six rebounds to fuel the Cavs’ 59-46 lead at halftime. Garland dished out eight assists and Mobley added 10 rebounds.
Siakam scored 11 points for the Raptors in first half but shot just 3 of 13 from the floor. Toronto shot just 32.7 percent from the field in the first half.
Markkanen had 10 points and Garland dished out six assists to help the Cavs to a 30-29 lead after one quarter. Three 3-point goals by Osman ignited an 18-5 run to start the second quarter and open up a 48-34 advantage.