CLEVELAND — Trae Young was in All-Star form on Wednesday night and dropped 20 points and a career-high 22 assists to lead the Atlanta Hawks past the Cleveland Cavaliers, 135-124, at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.
It was an electrifying performance where both teams went back-and-forth in a run-and-gun game that ended in a 35-35 tie after one quarter of play. The high scoring pace carried thoughout the game, but in the end the Cavs couldn’t overcome the Hakws’ torried shooting that included 20 made triples.
Six other Atlanta players registered double figures in points with DeAndre Hunter finishing with 26 while Jalen Johnson and Zacharrie Risacher pitched in 20 and 17 points respectively. Dyson Danielsand Onyeka Okongwu combined for 22 as the Hawks nailed 46 of 97 field goals (47.4 percent).
“Our defensive effort wasn’t where it needed to be. (We) weren’t physical enough, our swtiches weren’t physical enough,” Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell told reporters after the Hawks climbed to 8-11 for the season.
Mitchell had a great game for himself with, 30 points, 4 rebounds and 7 assists. Evan Mobley registered 22 and 12 rebounds while Jarett Allen and Darius Gaeland combined for 36 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists.
But it just didn’t come together offensively for the Cavs, who missed 51 of 95 shots while getting beaten off the boards, 51-44. Despite the defeat, though, the Cavaliers stayed on top of the regular season leaderboard with an imposing 17-2 record.
