FILE – Cedi Osman #16 of the Cleveland Cavaliers dribbles against the Chicago Bulls during the second half at United Center on December 31, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. Michael Reaves/Getty Images/AFP
Cedi Osman came off the bench to shoot 7-of-7 from 3-point range and match his career high with 29 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers shut down the visiting Los Angeles Clippers in the first half en route to a 122-99 blowout on Sunday.
Cleveland held Los Angeles to just 15 first-quarter points, with Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (4-of-5) making almost as many field goals as the entire Clippers lineup (5-of-23). Mitchell scored nine of his 11 points for the game in the opening period.
The onslaught continued in a 33-19 second quarter for Cleveland, which took a 64-34 lead into intermission. The gap swelled to as many as 40 points in the third quarter. Osman made five of his seven triples in the second half.
Osman, who finished 11-of-13 shooting from the floor overall, led eight different Cavaliers scoring at least eight points. Five scored in double figures, including Caris LeVert with 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range off the bench.
UPDATE: he's still on fire… Unknown as to when it'll be contained.
More updates to come. https://t.co/x9jFFMZfEx
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) January 30, 2023
Darius Garland recorded a double-double of 16 points and 10 assists in just 22:37 played. Jarrett Allen went for 15 points and eight rebounds, and Evan Mobley finished with nine points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots.
Cleveland shot 20-of-33 from beyond the arc as a team while holding Los Angeles to 2-of-19 on its 3-point attempts.
The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Clippers. Los Angeles came into Sunday’s contest, the second leg of a back-to-back and second date on a six-game road swing, playing with leaders Kawhi Leonard and Paul George sitting out after Saturday’s 120-113 win at Atlanta.
Brandon Boston Jr. scored a team-high 24 points off the bench to lead the short-handed Clippers. Amir Coffey scored 18 points, and both Moses Brown and Moussa Diabate finished with 13 points coming on in reserve.
Brown also grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds.