Steve Clifford wins his final game as Charlotte coach, Hornets beat playoff-bound Cleveland 120-110
Nick Smith Jr. scored a season-high 24 points and Steve Clifford won his coaching farewell as the Charlotte Hornets rallied to beat the playoff-bound Cleveland Cavaliers 120-110
CLEVELAND (AP) — Nick Smith Jr. scored a season-high 24 points and Steve Clifford won his coaching farewell as the Charlotte Hornets rallied to beat the playoff-bound Cleveland Cavaliers 120-110 on Sunday.
Max Strus had 14 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists for his first career triple-double for Cleveland, which rested All-Star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell, point guard Darius Garland and sixth man Caris LeVert.
The Cavaliers will have home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs, but left the floor without knowing their opponent. They lost 12 of their final 19 regular-season games to finish 48-34.
Georges Niang scored 16 points, Jarrett Allen posted 14 points and seven rebounds, and Evan Mobley had 14 points for Cleveland. Niang became the first Cavaliers player to appear in all 82 games since LeBron James in 2017-2018.
