Pelicans’ Powerful First Half Snaps Cavaliers’ Winning Streak

Cleveland allowed 66 first-half points to New Orleans in a 123-104 defeat tonight.

The Cleveland Cavaliers were on a three-game winning streak entering their game against the New Orleans Pelicans tonight.

A victory for the Cavaliers would have tied their longest winning streak of the season, and given them a sweep of their four-game homestand.

However, Cleveland fell to New Orleans by a score of 123-104 in the second night of a back-to-back.

The Wine and Gold’s defense allowed 66 Pelicans points in the first half. New Orleans shot 26-for-43 (60.5%) from the field and 10-for-20 (50%) from three-point range. The Cavaliers were outscored 36-28 in the first quarter, and 30-24 in the second.

Dec 21, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; New Orleans Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas (17) and Cleveland Cavaliers forward Dean Wade (32) contest a rebound in the first quarter at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse / © David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Offensively, Cleveland shot 19-for-40 (47.5%) from the field and 9-for-21 (42.9%) from behind the arc in the game’s first 24 minutes.

There were multiple first-half instances where the Wine and Gold kept the score close, but the Pelicans went on timely runs to distance themselves.

In the first quarter, New Orleans used a 10-0 run to take a 19-9 lead, and an 8-0 run to turn a 26-23 lead into a 34-23 advantage.

Then, in the second period, a Max Strus three-pointer reduced the Cavaliers’ deficit to 51-49 with 4:36 remaining in the first half. However, the Pelicans scored 13 unanswered points to make it a 64-49 game.

The second half was slightly more even, with New Orleans outscoring Cleveland 57-52.

Overall, Dean Wade led the way for the Cavaliers with a season-high 20 points and game-high nine rebounds, while tying his career-high of six three-pointers made. Craig Porter Jr. also tallied a career-high 11 assists in his third career NBA start.

As a team, Cleveland recorded a season-high 34 assists in its second consecutive game.

Up next, the Wine and Gold will face the Chicago Bulls on the road on Saturday night at 8:00 p.m.