Donovan Mitchell delivered 30 points and a series-shifting fourth-quarter surge to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 121-112 win over the Miami Heat on Wednesday, giving Cleveland a 2-0 lead in their first-round Eastern Conference playoff matchup.
After a furious Heat rally cut a 19-point deficit down to two, Mitchell responded with eight straight points to halt the momentum and secure the victory.
The All-Star guard finished with six rebounds, six assists, and seven made threes on 10-of-21 shooting.
Cleveland, the East’s top seed, set a new NBA playoff record with 11 three-pointers in the second quarter alone, and hit 22 for the game at a 48.9% clip.
Evan Mobley contributed 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting and Darius Garland added 21 points with nine assists, as the Cavaliers shot 91.3% from the line to maintain their edge.
The Heat, who entered the playoffs as the 10th seed, were paced by Tyler Herro’s 33 points and five assists.
Miami clawed back into the game with a 25-8 run that saw Davion Mitchell score 12 and Nikola Jovic chip in five points and eight rebounds.
Haywood Highsmith added 17 off the bench, going 5-of-6 from three-point range to fuel the Heat’s comeback push.
However, Cleveland’s bench depth answered, with De’Andre Hunter providing 12 points and Sam Merrill hitting two timely threes during the second-quarter surge.
The Cavaliers outscored Miami 43-27 in the second period to take a 17-point halftime lead, erasing an early 16-7 deficit.
Miami now heads home facing a must-win scenario, with Game 3 scheduled for Saturday afternoon at Kaseya Center.
