The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Cavs slam dunk win over Rockets, 112-96
Jarrett Allen tied his career high with 26points, grabbed 18 rebounds and blocked four shots in the win.
Jarrett Allen tied his career high with 26 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and blocked four shots as the Cavaliers pulled away for a 112-96 win over Houston on Feb. 24, extending the Rockets’ losing streak to nine games.
Allen, who leads the NBA making 67.2% of his field goals, went 10 of 11 from the floor as Cleveland won for the second straight evening
after dropping its previous 10 contests. It beat Atlanta 112-111 on Lamar Stevens’ dunk with 4.1 seconds left Feb. 23.
“At 22 years old, Jarrett is not near his potential ceiling — and that’s the part I’m most excited about,” Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “He plays off his teammates well and he knows they’re looking for him.”
Allen did it by himself in the third quarter, going coast to coast with a rebound and finishing with a one-handed dunk that reminded his coach of the legendary Julius Erving in the American Basketball Association.
“I got the rebound and I took two dribbles, so it’s close, it’s close (to what Dr. J did),” Allen said, laughing.
“We have the same first initial, we both had the afro and we both were soaring through the air.”
John Wall scored 20 points and Victor Oladipo had 17 points and six rebounds in his return from a strained right foot for Houston, whose last victory occurred at Memphis on Feb. 4. Eric Gordon added 17 points off the bench.
The Rockets were outrebounded 55-33 and didn’t start a player taller than 6-foot-6, which Wall and Oladipo both admitted
frustration about. P.J. Tucker and rookie Jae’Sean Tate led Houston with seven boards apiece.
“I’m used to playing with a traditional big that rolls and pops, just like John is, but we’ve got to figure out a way to win,” said Oladipo, who sat out the previous four games.
The Cavaliers blew the game open with a 22-9 run in the fourth, capped by a 3-pointer by rookie Isaac Okoro that made it 106-89. Cleveland later extended its lead to 112-93 on a trey by Collin Sexton, who scored 23 points.
Dean Wade scored 11 points and Cedi Osman had seven points and eight
rebounds as the Cavaliers held an opponent below 100 points for the first time since Feb. 1, a span of 11 games.
“Our defense wasn’t good and our offense was disjointed,” Houston coach Stephen Silas said. “It wasn’t very good all around.”
Darius Garland collected 11 points and 10 assists for the Cavaliers, who shot 67.6% in the second half.
Rookie Dylan Windler scored 13 points on 4-of-4 3-point shooting, extending his string of makes beyond the arc to nine.
“Continuing to see growth as a player is my goal, game after game and
year after year,” Windler said.
Chips off the block
Rockets coach Stephen Silas and Cavaliers counterpart J.B. Bickerstaff share a common background as the sons of longtime NBA coaches Paul Silas and Bernie Bickerstaff.
“We have very similar paths and points of view, so our friendship is invaluable,” Silas said.
When Bickerstaff took over the Grizzlies in 2018, he attempted to hire Silas. “We go back a long, long way, but he shunned me and went to Dallas,” Bickerstaff joked.