04/20/26 10:10:00
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04/20 22:09 CDT Mitchell scores 30, Harden adds 28 as Cavaliers beat Raptors
115-105 for 2-0 series lead
Mitchell scores 30, Harden adds 28 as Cavaliers beat Raptors 115-105 for 2-0
series lead
By JOE REEDY
AP Sports Writer
CLEVELAND (AP) --- Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, James Harden added 28 and
the Cleveland Cavaliers held on for a 115-105 victory over the Toronto Raptors
on Monday night for a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series.
Evan Mobley had 25 points and eight rebounds for the Cavaliers, who had at
least three players score at least 25 points in a postseason game for the
second straight season and fourth time overall.
"They threw the kitchen sink at us, gave us a lot of different looks and (we)
kept our poise," Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson said. "Donovan and James closed
it for us, but I thought our defense kind of forced them to go small. This is
what the playoffs are about. They came at us hard and we responded."
Cleveland --- which never trailed --- has won 12 straight playoff games against
Toronto, tying the NBA postseason record for consecutive wins against an
opponent. The streak began in the 2016 Eastern Conference finals, when the
Cavaliers took the final two games. Cleveland swept Toronto in four games in
the second round in 2017 and '18.
The Cavaliers also have 12-game winning streaks against Detroit and Atlanta,
while the Los Angeles Lakers had a 12-game run against Seattle from 1980
through '89.
Scottie Barnes led Toronto with a playoff career-high 26 points. RJ Barrett had
22 points and nine rebounds.
The Raptors had 16 fast-break points after being held to a season-low three on
Saturday. But Toronto committed a season-high 22 turnovers that led to 22
Cavaliers points.
"The only time the game got away was when we made a lot of turnovers. We played
super hard, we adjusted to how the game was going, and did certain things that
helped us," Barnes said.
The series shifts to Toronto for Game 3 on Thursday night.
Harden had four assists to move into seventh place on the playoff career list
with 1,139. He also had five steals, the fourth time he's had at least that
many in a playoff game.
A driving layup by Barnes got Toronto within 99-90 midway through the fourth
quarter. Mitchell responded with seven straight points to put it away.
The Cavaliers had a 73-57 advantage midway through the third quarter before the
Raptors countered with a 16-6 run.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
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