BY: REX ALBA – SPORTS ON AIR USA CORRESPONDENT
In the end, it was the Cavs, the best team in the East, who prevailed over the Thunder, the top seed in the West, 129-122.
CLEVELAND — In what was viewed by many as a preview of the 2025 NBA Finals. The Cleveland Cavaliers held off the OKC Thunder in a thrilling shootout on Wednesday night at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
The twin towers of Jarrett Allen (25 points, 11 rebounds and six assists) and Evan Mobley (21 points, 10 rebounds) proved too much for the visiting Thunder, who won their 11th in a row and a robust 19-1 record at home.
All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell was held to 11 points but his teammates picked up the slack against hot-shooting OKC, which hit 48-of-90 field goals and took a 32-25 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Darius Garland had 18 points and seven dimes while Ty Jerome and Max Strus pooled together 32 off the bench to underscore the depth of a Cleveland team that now holds the best record in the NBA at 33-4.
The victory over OKC emphasized the depth of the Cavaliers who used to be heavily reliant on Mitchell.
“It just speaks to our growth,” Mitchell told reporters after beating the hard-charging Thunder. “I told everybody after the game,as a unit, we don’t win this game last year.”
Prior to the Cleveland debacle, Oklahoma was on a 14-game winning streak, establishing itself as the favorites to emerge in the powerhouse Western Conference.
MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led OKC in a losing effort with 31 points, five rebounds and four assists while Jalen Williams added 25.
