Cavaliers, Magic Game 6 Instant Reaction: Takeaways From Cleveland's 103-96 Loss

The Cavs wasted a historic 50-point performance from Donovan Mitchell as the series shifts back to Cleveland for Game 7.

May 3, 2024; Orlando, Florida, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) drives to the / Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports

The Cavaliers hoped to close out their first-round matchup with the Magic in Game 6 as the series shifted back to Orlando. Games 3 and 4 went poorly for the WIne and Gold at the Kia Center earlier on in the best-of-seven showdown.

Led by a historic 50-point outing from Donovan Mitchell, the Cavaliers nearly punched their ticket to the Eastern Conference Semifinals. A late game collapse, however, gave momentum back to the Magic who forced a must-win Game 7 in Cleveland on Sunday afternoon.

Here are 5 takeaways from the Cavs 103-96 win on Friday night:

1) Sticking With It

With Jarret Allen ruled out for the second-straight game, J.B. Bickerstaff opened up the game with the unit that closed out the team's Game 5 win. Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Max Stus, Evan Mobley and Marcus Morris made up Cleveland's starting five. Morris was the big adjustment for Bickerstaff in Game 5, playing the veteran nearly 26 minutes. The chess move paid off for the Cavs head man who score 12, knocking down a couple of clutch threes, and posting a +8 for the game.

Bickerstaff was hoping for a similar spark from the 34-year-old in Game 6, unfortunately it never came. Morris was just 1-for-7 from the floor and finished with 2 points. He did have eight boards and two assists as well.

2) A Three-Point Drought

Three point shooting has been hard to come by in this series anyway (Cleveland entered the night shooting 28% from deep), but Game 6 saw the Cavs post their worst stretch of three-point shooting in the series. Max Strus knocked down the team's first three pointer of the game with 8:38 to go in the first quarter and Cleveland went on to miss their next 11 three pointers.

At halftime, they were were 1-of-14 (7%) from deep. Despite their three-point struggles, the Cavs were remarkably able to shoot 50-percent from the floor for the half. That said, things could have looked much different if they had hit even a few more during that stretch. The drought finally ended with about 9:08 to go in the third quarter.

3) An All-Time Performance Wasted

Star players are supposed to be at their best on this stage. For the Cavaliers, Donovan Mitchell was that and more in Game 6, despite the fact that he was clearly laboring through an injury. After going to the half with 19 points, Mitchell quickly made it 28 about midway through the third quarter. That 28 then became 50 before the end of the game.His memorable performance set a franchise record for points in a potential close-out game.

Unfortunately, it will be overshadowed by the loss. He was aggressive in finding different ways to breakdown Orlando and score closer to the rim, all the while laboring through an obvious leg injury. He had some really impressive finishes in this one, saw things really well in the half court to add 4 assists to go along with his 50 points. It was the type of performance Cavs fans have waited to see from Mitchell in a close out game. It's also the type of result that has to leave Mitchell questioning how far he can really go with this Cavaliers team.

4) Missing Jarrett Allen

On one hand the Cavaliers outscored the Magic 55-38 in the paint. On the other hand, they gave up 15 offensive rebounds in the loss and only had seven of their own. It sure feels like the Cavs will need Allen in Game 7 if they plan on advancing to the next round.

5) The Pressures of Crunch Time

An inspiring performance from Mitchell, was supported by an uninspiring performance from his supporting cast. Several fourth-quarter moments stand out. Garland getting called for an inexcusable eight-second violation bringing the ball into the half court. Isaac Okoro getting trigger shy from three with a few minutes to play. Evan Mobley missing easy put backs.

Mitchell was really the only player who rose to the occasion in crunch time of a close-out game. It was the type of collapse that has to make the Cavaliers star question how far he can really go with this team.