Donovan Mitchell scored 16 of his 42 points in the third quarter and James Harden had 26 points and seven assists, lifting the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 136-131 victory over the visiting Orlando Magic on Tuesday night.
Evan Mobley made all eight of his field-goal attempts and finished with 19 points, nine rebounds and six assists for Cleveland (45-27), which has won four consecutive games and is sitting comfortably in fourth place in the Eastern Conference.
Paolo Banchero had 36 points, going 13-for-15 from the foul line, and Tristan da Silva scored 10 of his 18 points in the fourth for the Magic (38-34). Orlando lost its sixth in a row — immediately after winning seven straight — to fall into a tie for eighth in the East.
The Magic, who trailed by 11 early in the fourth, pulled within 131-128 with 37.5 seconds left on two free throws from Wendell Carter Jr. before Mitchell followed with a short jumper and Cleveland’s Sam Merrill tacked on a free throw.
Banchero drilled a 3-pointer to get Orlando back within one possession at 134-131 with 1.1 seconds remaining, but Mitchell made two foul shots to ice the win. It was Mitchell’s sixth 40-plus point game of the season.
Desmond Bane and Jamal Cain each had 17 points for the Magic, while Wendell Carter Jr. and Jevon Carter scored 15 points apiece.
Merrill put up 19 points for the Cavaliers.
Mitchell caught fire in the third, sinking 6 of 7 field-goal attempts as Cleveland extended its advantage to 105-97. Banchero kept the Magic within striking range with eight points in the period.
The Cavaliers made 11 of their first 14 shots in the second quarter, two of them 3-pointers by Harden, to take a six-point lead. Harden converted a four-point play in the final second of the half, sending the hosts into the break ahead 72-68.
Harden scored 22 points and Banchero had 21 at the break. Cleveland shot 65.9% from the field and 50% on 3-pointers, also making all 10 free throw attempts.
Cleveland played without Jarrett Allen (knee), Jaylon Tyson (toe) and Craig Porter Jr. (groin).
Magic point guard Jalen Suggs (illness) missed his second game in a row.
Orlando’s Jamahl Mosley became the 115th coach in NBA history to amass 400 career games.
–Field Level Media
