Cleveland Cavaliers star goaltender Donovan Mitchell performed another great feature to lead the team to a 96-86 victory over the Orlando Magic in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series on Monday.
Mitchell finished with a season-high 23 points, adding 19 in the first half, and added 8 rebounds, 4 assists, a scouse loan and a block as the Cavs took a 2-0 lead in the series. He scored 30 points in Saturday’s opener.
The 27-year-old set the tone early on by opening the game with a 3-pointer. He made a brilliant performance in the first half before calming down in the second. However, it did offer some key elements in the fourth quarter.
Mitchell is one of five Cavs to score in double figures. Evan Mobley added 17 points, while Jarrett Allen had 16 points and 20 rebounds. Darius Garland scored 15 points and Isaac Okoro had 10 off the bench.
Paolo Banchero led the Magic with 21 issues, while Franz Wagner added 18. Cleveland led through 22 problems before Orlando made a late comeback that ended up failing. It’s the moment in the same game when the Magic has been limited to fewer than 90 issues.
Mitchell and the Cavs earned praise from fans on social media for their performance on Monday:
Donovan Mitchell when he sees SOMEONE protecting him: pic. twitter. com/aD2ighuBgS
Donovan Mitchell has 12 of Cleveland’s ? first numbers (via @NBA) pic. twitter. com/1ommEZI5XI
Donovan Mitchell has been a positive defender this year. If I had done it in a jazz t-shirt, we would have hung a banner in 2021.
Donovan Mitchell, those hells.
Donovan Mitchell is the missing piece
Cleveland Cavaliers with a convincing 58-44 lead over the Magic at halftime of Game 2. He lights up Donovan Mitchell’s performance with 19 points and seven rebounds. @wkyc
Donovan Mitchell is so underrated
Donovan Mitchell in the playoffs is different
Donovan Mitchell, the equalizer
After two playoff games, Mitchell turns out to be on a mission. If he continues to play like this, Cleveland has a good chance of making the Eastern Conference playoffs.
The series heads to Orlando for Game 3, when the Cavs and Magic meet Thursday at Kia Center. This will be Orlando’s first home playoff game since 2020.