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After seeing their season-high nine-game winning streak come to an end, the Cleveland Cavaliers look to begin a new streak when they face the visiting Chicago Bulls on Wednesday.
Cleveland fell just short in a 123-121 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday after Darius Garland missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. Donovan Mitchell scored 36 points to lead the Cavaliers, while Jarrett Allen added 21 points and 10 rebounds.
The loss was just the second for Cleveland in its last 19 games, and its first at home since Dec. 29.
“This is nothing to overreact to and get upset at,” Mitchell said. “I think the biggest thing is just coming out with the right mentality. We hadn’t done that in months. It’s OK to have a blip on the radar, but for us it’s continuing to sustain that and not getting bored with success.”
Garland missed the potential game-winner Monday, but the fifth-year point guard has played well since returning from a fractured jaw on Jan. 31. Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff has been monitoring Garland’s minutes since his return.
“I think he’s getting more and more comfortable,” Bickerstaff said. “We know how good Darius is. I think this next game will be good for him as far as just the rhythm and then the (All-Star) break to get his body a little more accustomed to the work of it all. He’ll be good to go.”
Cleveland has won its last six meetings against Chicago, including two previous matchups this season.
The Bulls received a stellar performance from guard Ayo Dosunmu in a 136-126 road win over the Atlanta Hawks on Monday. Dosunmu scored a career-high 29 points while shooting 12 of 18 from the field and 5 of 7 from 3-point range. The third-year pro also added seven assists.
“Shooting every morning allowed me to be able to come out here and play with confidence knowing the work I put in is high level,” Dosunmu said. “So it’s easy to come out here and let it translate, and once you see it translating you want to go harder and maximize to help the team win and be the best player I can be.”
Chicago coach Billy Donovan said he hasn’t been surprised by Dosunmu’s development. The Illinois product is averaging 16.4 points on 57.9-percent shooting over his last five games.
“I felt like in training camp you could see the signs that he was starting to do those things,” said Donovan. “You could see his intentions and mindset (to make the right play). He has a much better feel now of how he’s being guarded and the things he can go to.
“Teams have worked to keep him out of the lane, so they run under a lot of screens and back way off him and he’s worked to get himself ready to shoot. He’s got confidence in himself shooting. You saw him making the (right) decisions.”
The Bulls are hoping to have guard Alex Caruso available when they conclude their four-game road trip against Cleveland. Caruso sat out Monday’s game with a left toe contusion and is listed as questionable.
Torrey Craig started in place of Caruso against Atlanta and had nine points, six rebounds and five assists in 27 minutes.
–Field Level Media
