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Cavs ride big 3rd quarter to spoil LeBron James' return

Published Jan 29, 2026 04:08 pm

At A Glance

  • CLEVELAND (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 25 points, Jaylon Tyson had 20 and the Cleveland Cavaliers used a big third quarter to beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 129-99, and spoil LeBron James' return to Northeast Ohio.
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is fouled by Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell, right, in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Cleveland, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (23) is fouled by Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell, right, in the second half of an NBA basketball game in Cleveland, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
CLEVELAND (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 25 points, Jaylon Tyson had 20 and the Cleveland Cavaliers used a big third quarter to beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 129-99, and spoil LeBron James' return to Northeast Ohio.
De’Andre Hunter added 19 points, and Jarrett Allen had 17 points and nine rebounds to help Cleveland to its season-best fifth straight victory.
James had only 11 points, the first time in 13 trips to Cleveland as an opposing player he has not had at least 20. The 41-year old Akron native was 3 of 10 from the field, including 0 of 3 on 3-pointers, and was 5 of 6 from the line in 27 minutes.
It also was James' worst loss in Cleveland as a visiting player. He is 10-3, but has been on the losing end in his last two.
James teared up during a timeout with 7:46 remaining in the first quarter when the Cavaliers showed video highlights of him scoring 25 straight points during Game 5 of the 2007 Eastern Conference finals against the Detroit Pistons.
Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 29 points. Los Angeles fell to 3-2 on its seven-game road trip.
Doncic missed six minutes in the first quarter after having his left ankle looked at in the locker room. Doncic tweaked his ankle when he landed awkwardly near the Lakers’ bench after attempting a 3-pointer.
Cleveland led 57-55 at halftime, but took control in the third quarter, outscoring Los Angeles by 20 (42-22). It was the 12th time this season that the Cavaliers scored at least 40 points in a period.
It was tied at 57 when the Cavaliers went on a 25-8 run where Mitchell scored eight points and Tyson added seven.
Cleveland was 6 of 22 on 3-pointers in the first half, but went 7 of 11 in the third. It also was 17 of 25 from the field in the period.
Meanwhile, Stephen Curry scored 27 points, Moses Moody had 26 and the Golden State Warriors beat the Utah Jazz, 140-124.
Gui Santos had 16 points off the bench for the Warriors. Golden State made 23 3-pointers and never trailed over the final three quarters. Moody led the way with five 3s.
Brice Sensabaugh scored 22 points off the bench for Utah. Keyonte George had 19 points and seven assists. Ace Bailey also scored 19 points for the Jazz and Lauri Markkanen had 18.
Utah trimmed a 22-point deficit to single digits entering the fourth quarter. The Jazz drew to 108-100 on a pair of free throws from Isaiah Collier with 9:52 left. Curry made back-to-back baskets to restore a double-digit lead.
Golden State used a 20-2 run to go up 136-109 with 3:29 left.
Golden State made it rain from the perimeter early, going 15 of 31 from long distance before halftime. Eight different players made an outside basket for the Warriors in the first half. Buddy Hield and Moody accounted for three apiece before halftime.
Hield buried back-to-back 3s a minute into the second quarter to cap a 19-8 run that gave Golden State a 40-24 lead. The Warriors built a 16-point lead three other times in the second quarter — the final time when Quinten Post made a 3-pointer to make it 64-48.
Golden State expanded its lead to 22 points in the third quarter, going up 91-69 on a pair of free throws from Curry.
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