Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers beat Paolo Banchero, Magic in Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. — For three quarters Saturday night it was the Cavaliers vs. the Magic, but in the fourth it was Donovan Mitchell vs. Paolo Banchero. Unfortunately for the Magic, the Cavs held a double-digit lead heading into the final quarter so the offensive clinic put on by the two stars didn't figure into Cleveland's 119-105 victory. "They just started making shots, right?" Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said. "Banchero started hitting some big threes, and I felt like on those possessions we came back and answered with a bucket, with a big three … we answered all their runs." Mitchell saved his best for the second half as he only scored nine points in the first half — all in the first quarter — before exploding for 10 in the third quarter and 17 in the fourth as he and Banchero took turns drawing "oohs and aahs" from the Kia Center crowd with one big shot after another. "At some point, the ball is going to go in, right?" Mitchell said. "I was getting some easy ones, but I think the biggest thing is, just collectively, we didn't stop, right? Like we kept getting good looks. Offensively, we're doing a lot of things really well, and, defensively, we're trying to stay consistent. So when our offense catches up, that's what you saw tonight." Banchero started even slower, matching Mitchell's nine points in the first half and adding just three in the third, before scoring 15 in the fourth. The biggest difference was the support groups. Jaylon Tyson had another big game while starting for injured point guard Darius Garland, finishing with 17 points, nine assists and five rebounds. Evan Mobley added 13 points and seven rebounds, Dean Wade was also in double figures with 10 points and Tyrese Proctor had a somewhat quiet 12 points off the bench. But one of the biggest sparks was provided by Lonzo Ball, who only finished with six points, but they came on a couple big 3-pointers in crucial second-half runs and he showed hustle with eight rebounds and three steals in just over 24 minutes. "I felt like he had a lot of pop tonight," Atkinson said. "We were playing him in a lot of games before, so maybe this little break helped him, I'm thinking, because he did look like just a fresher athlete. But you saw the IQ, you saw the defense and the guy's a 40 percent career 3-point shooter. "I've been saying all year, he's going to help us in big games. He's going to help us in the playoffs." Ball was also relatively quiet during the first half, finishing with a steal and three rebounds in just under 13 minutes. But he hit a three in each of the second-half quarters and continued to be aggressive in the paint and on the perimeter by grabbing loose balls. "I thought we brought the energy tonight," Ball said. "I'm still trying to find my niche and today I just wanted to focus on playing defense, and that worked out for us well. So we'll start with there … just bring good energy, hit open shots when I take them and continue taking it one game at a time. We just want to keep getting better and better and then go into the playoffs on a high note." The catalyst of any success the Cavaliers will have down the stretch and into the postseason will come from the all-around talents of Mitchell, who added nine assists and five rebounds to his game-high 36 points. The guard has rallied the starting five — which includes Tyson, Mobley, Wade and Jarrett Allen with normal starters Garland, Max Strus and Sam Merrill injured — into a cohesive unit that has won five of its last six games. "Just consistent … it's a consistent effort," Mitchell said. "Even when things aren't perfect, there's still so many things we did well … and there's so many things we could be better at, but we just stayed aggressive and have continued to find a way." Contact Shaun Bennett at (440) 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com. Like him on Facebook and follow him @ShaunBennettct on X.