Cavaliers avoid late collapse to take 2-0 series lead over the Heat

Last updated: 2025/04/24 at 2:28 AM

BigP Published April 24, 2025

Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, including 17 in the fourth quarter, and the Cleveland Cavaliers held on for a 121-112 victory over the Miami Heat on Wednesday night for a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series.

The top-seeded Cavaliers set an NBA playoff record with 11 3-pointers in the second quarter and had 22 for the game. However, Cleveland had to hold off a second-half charge by Miami.

Tyler Herro scored 33 points for Miami, which hosts Game 3 on Saturday afternoon.

The Cavaliers had a 19-point lead with under 3 minutes remaining in the third quarter before the Heat made their run to get within 105-103 lead with 3:11 left.

Mitchell, who also had six rebounds and six assists, then put the game on his shoulders. He scored Cleveland’s next eight points, including a pair of 3-pointers, during an 8-2 run to give them some breathing room.

Evan Mobley had 20 points and Darius Garland 19 for the Cavaliers.

Miami had a 16-7 lead before the Cavs rallied and went up 25-24 at the end of the first quarter.

Cleveland held a 33-30 lead before taking control with a 17-4 run that included five 3-pointers, with two apiece by Max Strus and Sam Merrill.

De’Andre Hunter’s dunk with 2:33 remaining in the third quarter gave the Cavaliers a 93-74 advantage before the Heat made their charge with 10 straight points. That started a 25-8 run that saw the Heat get within a basket. Davion Mitchell had 12 of his 18 points during the rally, with five points apiece by Herro and Nikola Jovic.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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