CLEVELAND — To start the new year off, the Cavaliers hosted the Bulls and won 145-134 in overtime thanks to a record-setting performance by Donovan Mitchell, one day after the Cavs beat the Bulls by one point in Chicago.
In the first half of the game, the Bulls took control offensively and defensively. The Cavs struggled to make shots and couldn’t keep up with the Bulls' fast pace. They managed to lead by 18 points at the half.
Donovan Mitchell only had 16 points by the end of the second quarter. But as soon as the third quarter started, “Spida” Mitchell went off.
From the eight-minute mark and on, Mitchell rarely missed anything. From jumpers to threes to free throws, "Spida" kept his groove going. He brought the game back in the Cavs' favor, breaking the Bulls' lead and giving his team more structure, setting them up for good shots.
Mitchell dropped 24 points in the third quarter alone.
While many may have thought the game could have been over in the fourth, Mitchell didn’t think so. The score slowly began to get closer, and the pace became a lot quicker for both teams. Mitchell was going off with assists to Cedi Osman, Kevin Love, and Jarrett Allen throughout the quarter, adding to him scoring jumpers and three-pointers back-to-back.
Down to the last couple of seconds of regular game time, the Cavs were down by two with four seconds left. Mitchell was fouled and went to the free-throw line. He intentionally missed his second shot and miraculously got his rebound and scored, tying up the game 130-130 and pushing it to overtime. The crowd, bench and probably even the refs were stunned with what just happened.
Mitchell, in overtime, started off with a three-pointer and then proceeded to make two more afterward. Mitchell got the win for the Cavs, 145-134.
He literally almost didn't miss a single shot from the third quarter and on — all combined, he had 55 points.
Of course, the “MVP” chants started, Donovan “Spida” Mitchell had now ended with a career-high of 71 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds. Mitchell set a new franchise record and NBA record for this season, beating Maverick Luka Dončić's 60 points from a few days ago.
Mitchell also became the 12th player in NBA history to score 70 points or more in one game, according to the league.
"I'm speechless, not only did I do that, but I did it in an effort where we came back and won, this is nuts. I'm extremely blessed, humbled, I'm in that group. I always believed I can be one of the best players in this league, but I got to keep working," said Mitchell.
After this amazing win for the Cavs and a night to remember for Mitchell, they will host the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Watch live and local news any time:
Download the News 5 Cleveland app now for more stories from us, plus alerts on major news, the latest weather forecast, traffic information and much more. Download now on your Apple device here, and your Android device here.
You can also catch News 5 Cleveland on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, YouTube TV, DIRECTV NOW, Hulu Live and more. We're also on Amazon Alexa devices. Learn more about our streaming options here.
