Cavaliers Lose To The Heat 121-84: Game Recap 3/24/24

Post-Game Recap

3 Notes Around the Loss

1 – Blowout

The Cleveland Cavaliers lost by 37 points. Cleveland’s starters scored only 38 points, and only one scorer was in double figures. The starters were benched at the 8:34 mark in the 3rd quarter and never came back on the floor.  

2 – Rebounds and turnovers

The Cavs did not score, and Cleveland, to help aid in a blowout, did not rebound, getting outrebounded 44 to 30.   The Cavaliers also added 17 turnovers that turned into 35 Miami points. 

3 – Mobley

Evan Mobley returned and was the leader in points on the night with 15. 

Game Recap

Haywood Highsmith contributed 18 points as part of a collective 59-point performance by Miami’s bench, propelling the Heat to their most significant lead in over a decade in a commanding 121-84 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday night.

Bam Adebayo dominated with 15 points and 16 rebounds, while Jimmy Butler added 15 points for the Heat, who established a staggering 45-point lead in the fourth quarter. This surpassed their previous season-high lead of 33 points, also against Cleveland on Nov. 22. The 45-point advantage marked their most substantial margin since their 46-point lead over Chicago in a playoff game on May 8, 2013.

Despite Philadelphia’s win over the Los Angeles Clippers earlier in the day, Miami retained their seventh position in the Eastern Conference, tied with the 76ers at 39-32, courtesy of a favorable head-to-head tiebreaker.

Evan Mobley contributed 15 points for Cleveland (43-28), who suffered their seventh loss in ten games but maintained their third-place standing in the East, narrowly ahead of New York.

Terry Rozier and Thomas Bryant each chipped in 14 points for Miami, securing the team’s most significant victory margin of the season. This marked Cleveland’s most lopsided defeat, with both records previously set in their November clash, which Miami won 129-96.

Both teams faced roster challenges, with Cleveland welcoming back Mobley after a nine-game absence due to an ankle injury, yet still missing Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, and Dean Wade. Miami was without Tyler Herro, Kevin Love, Duncan Robinson, and Jaime Jaquez Jr.

Miami halted a three-game home losing streak, punctuated by buzzer-beating layups from Rozier to conclude both the first and second quarters, propelling them to a 30-22 lead after the first and a commanding 60-39 advantage at halftime.

The third quarter proved decisive, as Miami embarked on a 23-2 run over a five-minute span, stretching their lead to 86-46. Cleveland opted to bench all five starters just 3 1/2 minutes into the third quarter, with four of them remaining sidelined for the remainder of the game.

Up Next

Host Charlotte on Monday.