Donovan Mitchell scores 32, Darius Garland adds 20 in return as Cavs beat Pacers 120-109 in NBA Cup

CLEVELAND — The Cavaliers' offensive catalyst has returned. Point guard Darius Garland returned after a five-game absence and propelled Cleveland's 120-109 decision over the lowly Indiana Pacers on Friday at Rocket Arena. "He's our paint invader," Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. "He makes us so much more versatile. We felt a little bit more like ourselves tonight." Garland, who hadn't played since Nov. 10 at Miami, finished with 20 points and seven assists. In all, four Cleveland players scored 20 or more points, led by shooting guard Donovan Mitchell's 32 points, nine rebounds, five assists and one steal. Evan Mobley, forced to play center with Jarrett Allen taking the night off with a sore finger on his right hand, was dominant in the post with 22 points, a game-high 12 rebounds, four assists and four blocks. Forward De'Andre Hunter added 20 points, seven rebounds and two steals, while swingman Jaylon Tyson contributed 14 points and eight rebounds. Tyson has also missed the previous five games with a concussion. He knocked down 2-of-3 from the 3-point line and now leads the Cavs in long-distance accuracy at .473. "He's playing like a 10-year vet," Atkinson said. "He's shooting at a high level. I'm beyond thrilled that he's back. He's really surprising a lot of people." Tyson, who started at small forward, has been a pleasant surprise with his 3-point shooting. "That wasn't his niche in college," Atkinson said. "He's transforming his game from what he did at Cal. Knocking down those shots are huge for us." Mitchell was amazed at how hard Tyson played coming off the concussion. "He's a dog," he said. "I'm really impressed with him, and he has a lot more room to grow." Being out of the lineup since Nov. 10 was tough for Tyson. "It felt amazing to be back with my brothers," he said. "It was a very long process for me. I'm just playing off our star players. Garland seemed to tweak his left big toe in the fourth quarter and was limping on the court. "I'm OK," he said. "I've been getting a lot of treatment. I was trying to get the toe moving." Garland admits beating the Pacers felt good since they eliminated Cleveland in the second round of the playoffs last year. "We had a little extra juice," he said. Sixth man Lonzo Ball didn't score in the game, but added seven rebounds, five assists and one block. "He's a magician with the rock," Garland said. "He can create for others with the ball in his hand." The Cavs outrebounded the Pacers 52-43, including 14-10 on the offensive glass. Cleveland started the fourth quarter with a three-guard offense of Garland, Mitchell and Ball. Mitchell said all are high-IQ players and present different problems for the defense. "Where is the help going to come from?" he asked. Atkinson was impressed with having four 20-point scorers. "That's pretty cool," he said. "That was reminiscent of what we had going last year. "We had spacing tonight. We're throwing out lineups with four or five shooters." Indiana guard Andrew Nembhard matched Mitchell's 32 points, while forward Pascal Siakam added 26 and guard Bennedict Mathurin had 21. Cleveland improved to 11-6 on the season, while Indiana tumbled to 2-14. The Cavs are 2-1 in NBA Cup games and in second place behind Toronto in the East Group A standings with a 34-point differential. The Cavs led 100-81 after three quarters and 62-55 at halftime. Bob Finnan can be reached at rfinnan30@gmail.com. Follow him @BobCavsinsider on X. Cavs 120, Pacers 109 INDIANA (109): Sheppard 1-6 0-0 2, Siakam 9-15 5-6 26, I.Jackson 1-4 1-2 3, Mathurin 7-15 5-5 21, Nembhard 11-20 7-7 32, Robinson-Earl 0-2 2-2 2, Walker 2-6 2-2 6, Bradley 0-2 2-2 2, Huff 2-9 0-0 5, Dennis 0-0 0-0 0, Mathews 0-3 0-0 0, McConnell 4-6 0-0 10, Peter 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 37-88 24-26 109.CLEVELAND (120): Hunter 8-16 1-1 20, Tyson 6-7 0-0 14, Mobley 7-13 7-11 22, Garland 5-12 7-7 20, Mitchell 11-22 6-8 32, Tomlin 1-4 0-0 2, Bryant 0-1 0-0 0, Nance Jr. 2-4 0-0 4, Wade 2-4 0-0 4, Ball 0-2 0-0 0, Porter Jr. 1-3 0-0 2, Proctor 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 43-89 21-27 120.Indiana&emsp;&emsp;31&emsp;&emsp;24&emsp;&emsp;26&emsp;&emsp;28&emsp;&emsp;—&emsp;&emsp;109Cleveland&emsp;&emsp;33&emsp;&emsp;29&emsp;&emsp;38&emsp;&emsp;20&emsp;&emsp;—&emsp;&emsp;1203-Point Goals -- Indiana 11-37 (Nembhard 3-5, Siakam 3-6, McConnell 2-2, Mathurin 2-7, Huff 1-7, Walker 0-2, Mathews 0-3, Sheppard 0-5), Cleveland 13-35 (Mitchell 4-11, Garland 3-4, Hunter 3-9, Tyson 2-3, Mobley 1-1, Bryant 0-1, Nance Jr. 0-1, Tomlin 0-1, Ball 0-2, Wade 0-2). Fouled Out -- None. Rebounds -- Indiana 43 (Siakam 9), Cleveland 52 (Mobley 12). Assists -- Indiana 25 (Nembhard 8), Cleveland 28 (Garland 7). Total Fouls -- Indiana 22, Cleveland 22. A --19,432 (19,432)