WASHINGTON — Sunday night was supposed to be a chance for the Cleveland Cavaliers’ growing young backcourt to measure themselves against one of the league’s best — Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal.
But the Cavs were one short. And two was better than one. The Washington Wizards extended their winning streak to eight games, beating feisty Cleveland, 119-110, and creating more separation in the race for 10th. It’s the Wizards’ eighth straight win — their longest streak since 2001.
Darius Garland’s ascension continued, starring on a night Collin Sexton missed the game because of a concussion.
Outplaying counterpart Westbrook, Garland poured in 28 points on 9-of-20 from the field. That included 4-of-8 from 3-point range to go with nine assists and four rebounds in 40 minutes. Westbrook had just 14 points on 5-of-13 shooting. He also dished out 11 assists. But Garland’s old AAU mentor, Beal, was the difference. Beal tallied a game-high 33 points.
“He was doing it all. He was a lead guard,” Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff said of Garland. “He was asked to score, he was asked to distribute, and play both ends of the floor, and I thought he was excellent tonight. Anytime you make teams have to make an adjustment on you, that means you’re doing the job. And I thought that he was great tonight in taking that load and carrying that burden.”
Cedi Osman started in Sexton’s place. In his first appearance since April 14, following five straight DNPs, Osman scored 19 points and had five assists.
“It speaks to his character and what type of person he is, the work that he puts in, how important his teammates are to him, all those things and hats off to him for being ready,” Bickerstaff said of Osman. “And that’s what the league is about. For all of us, there’s the ups and the downs, but you got to be prepared and stay ready for when your number’s called. And I thought Cedi was phenomenal tonight, competing on both ends of the floor.”
Jarrett Allen finished with a career-high 27 points to go with 12 boards. Kevin Love and Isaac Okoro — the two other starters — also reached double figures, with 12 and 10 points, respectively.
In an exciting matchup that featured nine lead changes and 14 ties, the Cavs entered the fourth quarter with a six-point advantage. But without Sexton to take some defensive attention away, the Wizards focused more on Garland. They started trapping the second-year guard, forcing him to give up the ball and holding him to six points, two field goals and a pair of turnovers in the fourth.
With Garland contained, Cleveland’s offense floundered, scoring just 17 points on 6-of-16 from the field and 0-of-5 from beyond the arc in the final 12 minutes.
With the pressure cranked up and a sellout crowd against them, the Cavs got flustered again. They committed six of their 19 turnovers in the final quarter, allowing more seasoned Washington to rip the game away.
Meanwhile, Westbrook and Beal combined for 16 of Washington’s 32 fourth-quarter points, nearly outscoring the Cavs on their own and showing how much experience matters this time of year.
“It’s being in those positions, time and time again, and understanding the possessions are important at that moment,” Bickerstaff said. “But the experience of being there over and over again and time and time again allows you to be more comfortable just to make the next play. It takes the opportunity and it takes experience being there. And every close basketball game we play, our guys will be better for it.”
Prior to the game, Bickerstaff spoke about seeing a different Garland lately. He was amped for Sunday’s showdown. The youngster earned Washington’s respect, forced the Wizards to alter their defensive plan, and proved why he’s viewed as one of the league’s up-and-comers at the position — even though the Cavs couldn’t finish.
Going deeper
Bickerstaff used six players off the bench, deepening his rotation in a different way than usual. Brodric Thomas came in during the first quarter. Even Lamar Stevens got some extended run because of foul trouble. But the Cavs’ bench didn’t provide much of a scoring lift, being outscored 51-14.
Up next
The Cavs will head to Tampa for the road trip finale against the Raptors on Monday. Tip off is set for 7:30 p.m.
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