Donovan Mitchell scores 28 and NBA-best Cavs beat Bulls 139-117 for 11th straight win

[March 05, 2025]   CHICAGO (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 28 points, Jarrett Allen added 25 points and 17 rebounds, and the NBA-best Cleveland Cavaliers won their 11th straight game, 139-117 over the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night.

Darius Garland added 19 points on 7-of-22 shooting for the Cavs, who rested forward Evan Mobley and fell behind by 15 points in the first half but still found a way to extend their third double-digit winning streak of the season. Cleveland began the season 15-0 and had a 12-game run in December and January.

Cleveland Cavaliers forward Dean Wade, right, guards Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis (14) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Tuesday, March 4, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Coby White led the Bulls with 25 points. Talen Horton-Tucker scored a season-high 22 and Zach Collins had 20.

Cleveland closed within 58-57 at halftime and the game was close throughout the third quarter. It was 107-all midway through the fourth when the Cavs began a decisive 14-0 run. Allen scored six points during the burst, and Garland's 3-pointer made it 121-107 with 4:54 left.

Takeaways
Cavaliers: Cleveland had to rally from double-digit deficits in each of its past three games to keep its winning streak going. The Cavs trailed 25-3 at Boston on Friday night but came back to win 123-116, and they rallied from 18 points down to beat Portland in overtime on Sunday.

Bulls: Chicago (24-38) has lost nine of 11 and fell to 11-22 at home but is still clinging to the final play-in spot in the Eastern Conference.

Key moment
Allen's dunk put the Cavs ahead 109-107. He then blocked a layup attempt by Tre Jones on the other end, and Max Strus found a trailing Allen for a transition layup.

Key stats
The Cavs outscored the Bulls 43-23 in the fourth quarter.

Mitchell surpassed 13,000 points for his career. He has a 24.8 points-per-game average over eight seasons.

Up next
Cavaliers: Host Miami on Wednesday night.

Bulls: At Orlando on Thursday night.

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