Although the Memphis Grizzlies had 12 players down and were playing on the second night of a back-to-back, they gave the Cleveland Cavaliers everything they had and then some. At halftime, Memphis was up 51-48, and it felt like the Cavs were about to hit a new low point on an already tumultuous season.
But, thankfully for the Cavs' sake, there was still a second half of action to correct the record and show they were the better team. When the third quarter began, Cleveland gave Memphis everything they had and then some, outscoring the Grizzlies 30-16.
“I think we were playing a little uptight, trying to make sure that every single thing was perfect, and I think that's when we're not at our best,” said big man Jarrett Allen. “So J.B. was just like, ‘Go out there, have fun, and play our brand of basketball.'”
The third-quarter scoring onslaught led to the Cavs firmly having momentum in their corner entering the final frame, guiding Cleveland to a dramatic turnaround win. Despite a lot of bad in the first half, it played a part in the second-half turnaround and, more importantly, helped the Cavs re-find some of their swagger with the playoffs looming.
Pace-and-space pushes Cavs on both ends of the floor
Before the game, Cavs head coach J.B. Bickerstaff stressed the importance of Cleveland locking in on their in-game habits and tendencies before the playoffs, with this matchup against the Grizzlies serving as the first step. Curiously enough, Cavs forward Georges Niang recently said Cleveland needed to play with pace-and-space on offense since that's when the Cavs are at their best offensively.
Well, call it happenstance or whatever you want, but in the second half, Cleveland zeroed in on winning habits by playing the way Niang thinks they're at their best. While the Cavs showed signs of playing with pace-and-space all game long, things started to click for Cleveland on offense when the third quarter began.
“I think we started playing faster,” said Allen. “I think that opened up a lot of things for us, transition, all of that, and just passing the ball to each other. I think we ended the first half with seven assists. And then the third quarter came when we probably had more than seven assists in just the third quarter alone. So just moving the ball, playing faster, and playing with more force.”
The Cavs outscored the Grizzlies 53-33 in the final two quarters of play, with all eight players who played scoring for Cleveland. 11 of those points came off fast-break scenarios. Even if the Cavs didn't score on the break, it allowed them to get set up on offense at a quicker pace.
From there, Cleveland maintained a break-neck, downhill approach, creating constant pressure at the basket. That pressure saw the Cavs connect on a hyper-efficient 13-of-17 of their attempts within the perimeter and, more impressively, earned them 15 trips to the free-throw line.
Sure, the Cavs wish they had been more efficient at shooting 70.6% from the charity stripe. But Cleveland created constant pressure at the bucket and then unlocked arguably their greatest offensive strength: their three-point shooting.
Overall, the Cavs shot 15-of-37 from the perimeter, which seems fairly average for a team as loaded as Cleveland from three-point range. But, by turning up the intensity in the second half, the Cavs were lights-out from the perimeter — connecting on 44.4% of their three-point attempts.
Again, everything wasn't perfect for the Cavs. Still, it was a step in the right direction and gave the team momentum heading into their upcoming matchup against the Indiana Pacers. Allen called that tilt with Indiana a playoff-caliber matchup, so with Cleveland riding some momentum and heading into that game, it should make things a bit easier on either end of the floor.
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