Mitchell’s 45 points power NBA Cavs over Nets in Paris

Paris – Donovan Mitchell scored a season-high 45 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers over the Brooklyn Nets 111-102 in an NBA regular-season game on Thursday at Paris.

Four-time NBA All-Star guard Mitchell added six assists and four steals while making 15-of-30 shots from the field, 4-of-12 from 3-point range, and 11-of-13 free throws to ignite the Cavs’ fourth consecutive triumph.

“He’s unstoppable,” Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen said of Mitchell. “He leads the offense and defense. He’s talking. He does everything on the court. He just leads us.”

Cleveland improved to 22-15, level with Indiana and New York for fourth in the Eastern Conference, while the Nets slid to 16-22, 10th in the East, after their seventh loss in eight games.

“We had our fun in Paris the first couple days and then when it came down to business we locked in and got the job done,” Allen said.

“We didn’t know what to expect coming in but the fans surprised us and came out rocking.”

Caris LeVert added 21 points off the bench for Cleveland while Allen stretched his streak of double-doubles to eight games with 12 points and 12 rebounds while also contributing four blocked shots, four assists and two steals.

“I’m just having fun with it,” Allen said. “When I’m having fun with the game I feel I’m at my best and this was an example of that.”

Mikal Bridges and reserve Cam Thomas each scored 26 points to lead the Nets, who trailed by as many as 26 points before a late run trimmed the final margin of their fourth consecutive loss in meetings with the Cavs.

Mitchell, who produced his fourth double-double of the season, passed off three assists in the first half to reach the milestone of 2,000 career assists.

Mitchell scored 12 points in the first quarter to lift the Cavaliers to a 26-16 lead and by halftime, Mitchell had 17 points and Cleveland led 54-34.

It was another weak start for the Nets, who shot 12-of-36 (33.3%) from the floor in the first half, going only 3-of-14 from 3-point range.

Brooklyn managed only a season-low in first half points as well as a first half season-high of 12 turnovers. Reserve Cam Thomas led the Nets in the first half with 11 points.

Celebrities sitting courtside for the special France contest included World Cup champions Kylian Mbappe of France and former Brazil forward Ronaldo as well as retired England star David Beckham and retired French NBA legend Tony Parker.

The game was the NBA’s third regular-season contest played in Paris with Milwaukee beating Charlotte 116-103 in 2020 and Chicago defeating Detroit 126-108 last year.