The Cleveland Cavaliers came into their Game 4 matchup on Saturday coming off of a 38-point defeat against the Orlando Magic in Game 3 of the series, the worst playoff loss in the history of their organization. And unfortunately for Cavaliers fans, Saturday’s matchup ended up being much of the same after a disastrous second-half performance.
Cleveland got off to a hot start in this matchup, going into the half with a 60-51 lead thanks to 18 first-half points from star guard Donovan Mitchell.
Things then completely got off the rails in the second half. The Cavs’ offense went cold, scoring only ten points in the third quarter. Meanwhile, the Magic scored 37 points in the quarter, ending the quarter on a 27-5 run.
In one quarter, the game completely flipped on its head. And the Cavs simply weren’t able to overcome the huge deficit. They would go on to get outscored 24-19 in the fourth quarter to fall 112-89 in the game, the second straight game where they have lost by over 20 points.
The Cavaliers only scored 29 points in the second half of this game, which isn’t going to get it done against just about any NBA team, much less against a playoff team like the Magic.
Naturally, many around the NBA world took to social media to call out the Cavaliers for their horrific second-half performance.
What are the cavs doing? Wow I cannot believe what I’ve been watching this second half
— thebettingqueen (@thebettingqueen) April 27, 2024
I have more passion on this website than the Cavs have in this second half. Disgusting
— Drake Burgess (@DrizzyDrake_2) April 27, 2024
The Magic certainly deserve a ton of credit as well for their stifling defense in the second half. But for the Cavaliers to struggle as much as they have is simply unacceptable considering how well things had gone for them in the first half.
Second-half struggles have been a troubling trend for the Cavaliers throughout these past two games in Orlando, particularly in the third quarter. The Magic outscored Cleveland 35-16 in the third quarter in Game 3 of the series as well.
The Cavaliers will now return home to Cleveland for a pivotal Game 5 in this series next week. But given how the last two games have gone, this series feels anything but even despite both teams taking the first two games on their respective home courts.