Darius Garland and the Cleveland Cavaliers avoided a two-game losing skid when they successfully pulled off a come-from-behind 114-108 victory over the Charlotte Hornets on the road Sunday. It took a huge second half for the Cavs to erase a 16-point deficit, with Garland stressing after the game his team’s need to be more consistent in having the same offensive intensity when coming out of the half.
“We just don’t have the firepower that we have in the second half coming into the game, which needs to change,” Darius Garland stated, via Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. “Coming off a long road trip from Miami, I think that is on our backs still, but our second half we turned up quick. If we have that same intensity in the second half and bring it to the first half or start of the game, we would be in another category.”
For what it’s worth, Darius Garland and the Cavs are producing the third-fewest points on average in the second half in the league. So far this season, they are scoring only 54.4 points in the final two quarters of games.
Donovan Mitchell led the charge in the second half for the Cavs against the Hornets, as he scored 16 points in that window, while Evan Mobley had 12 second-half points. Darius Garland did his part as well with nine points and five assists in the second half to finish with a game-high 28 points to go along with six rebounds.
Up next for the Cavs is a rematch with the Hornets in the same location on Tuesday.