Cleveland Cavaliers (36-21) beat Charlotte Hornets (26-31) 118-113 on the road on Friday, February 20.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Cavaliers struck first, taking the opening quarter 30-20 and a 10-point lead after one. The Hornets cut into the deficit with a 33-29 second quarter, though the Cavaliers still led by 6 at halftime.
The Hornets won the third 36-31 to stay in front, taking a 1-point lead into the fourth. The Cavaliers took the fourth 28-24; the Cavaliers finished the job for a 118-113 regulation win.
What decided it
The Cavaliers got more from their shots, finishing at 59.7% effective field-goal shooting compared with 50% for the Hornets. The Cavaliers made 33.8 free throws per 100 field-goal attempts, compared with 22.8 for the Hornets. In a 5-point game, that shooting gap supplied the clearest edge.
The Hornets did win one battle, second chances: ORB% of 45.1% against 33.3%. The Cavaliers made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 92 possessions per team, the Cavaliers produced 129 points per 100 possessions to 123.5 for the Hornets.
Who made the difference
Jarrett Allen was the game's biggest individual force for CLE: 26 pts, 14 reb, 2 ast on 11-15 shooting. His Game Score of 27.6 led everyone. His team was -2 with him on the floor.
Kon Knueppel led the Hornets with 33 pts, 6 reb, 2 ast on 11-20 shooting, good for a 26.8 Game Score.
Ryan Kalkbrenner (12 pts, 13 reb, 1 ast) and Jarrett Allen (26 pts, 14 reb, 2 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 43% for the Cavaliers.
Across the last 7 meetings in our records, Cleveland Cavaliers lead 6-1.
The Cavaliers are now 36-21, and the Hornets are 26-31. The Cavaliers last five before this game: W-W-W-W-W.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.