CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cavs are on their sixth three-game win streak of the season after dropping the San Antonio Spurs, 124-116, on Thursday at Rocket Arena.

Why do the Cavs have over 50 wins when leading entering the fourth quarter? Because they continuously go into the final period with momentum. Thursday was no exception.

After the Spurs had used both their challenges to reverse calls against them in the period, getting to the free throw line to give them an 81-79 lead, the Cavs wanted to create a little magic of their own.

As Donovan Mitchell drove to the basket, Sam Merrill cut to the rim from the opposite corner for an easy layup. On the ensuing possession, Merrill was open again, this time on the wing for the triple. The sharpshooter finished with 13 points and three triples.

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And then Mitchell had to put the exclamation point on the period going into the final stretch. He took off into the middle of the painted area and soared to the rafters for the emphatic slam to get the crowd hyped heading into the fourth. Mitchell finished with 25 points, a career-high 14 assists and eight rebounds.

It was the momentum swing the Cavs needed after a stalled third period with so many stoppages, including an official review that led to a flagrant foul call on De’Andre Hunter and a five-point swing for the Spurs.

But San Antonio, a team with nothing to lose, didn’t go away.

There were eight lead changes in the fourth quarter alone. And it was the Cavs’ quiet giant who came through to help seal the win for the home crowd.

In the first half, Jarrett Allen played 14 minutes and took just two shot attempts for two points. After Tristan Thompson was dealt a flagrant two and ejected from the contest, Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson was forced to put Allen back in the game.

The 6-foot-9 center poured in 19 of his game-high 29 points in the final period, and he was a perfect 6 of 6 from the field.

His stellar performance in the fourth was highlighted by a second-chance dunk after an offensive rebound to put the Cavs up by five with just under five minutes to play. Allen also finished with 16 rebounds for his team-leading 38th double-double of the season.

To close out the game, it was Cleveland’s tenacious defense that held the Spurs to seven points over the final four minutes.

Up next

The Cavs travel to Detroit for the second game of a back-to-back on Friday.