Mitchell, Harden power Cavs to 2-0 over Raptors

Donovan Mitchell and James Harden combined for 58 points as the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Toronto Raptors 115-105 to take a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven NBA Eastern Conference first-round playoff series on Monday, News.Az reports, citing foreign media.

Fourth-seeded Cleveland, who secured a 126-113 win in Game 1 on Saturday, once again proved too strong for the fifth-seeded Raptors, delivering a wire-to-wire victory.

Mitchell led the scoring with 30 points, including four three-pointers, while Harden added 28 points along with five rebounds and four assists.

Evan Mobley also impressed for Cleveland, contributing 25 points on an efficient 11-of-13 shooting performance.

The Cavaliers’ win further highlighted the growing offensive chemistry between Mitchell and the 36-year-old Harden, who joined the team via trade in February and appears to be hitting form at a crucial stage of the season.

“He's been doing it a little bit longer than me but we've still been doing it for a long time — just trying to find ways to win,” Mitchell said of Harden.

“Whether it's passing, it's rebounding, getting stops — when you have two guys who are trying to chase the same thing, it definitely helps for sure,” he added.

Toronto was led by Scottie Barnes with 26 points, while RJ Barrett chipped in 22.

Game 3 of the series will be played in Toronto on Thursday.

News.Az 

By Nijat Babayev