‘The game is over in the first quarter’

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson expressed extreme disappointment after his team suffered a 117-100 loss to the Houston Rockets on Saturday. That final score was generous, as the Cavs trailed by as many as 31 points in the fourth quarter and barely showed a pulse the rest of the game. promising week of basketball.

“I rarely say this, but I thought the game was over in the first quarter,” Atkinson said after the game. “Their physicality, we weren’t ready to fight. I don’t know how else to put it. Encouraged after the Knicks game because we were ready to fight, but (Saturday), call it what you want. Christmas hangover? I have no idea. It’s hard for me to (describe). It wasn’t the same team that played the other night against the Knicks.

“So that was the focus, right? You had eight (in the first quarter) turnovers and then they obviously bullied us physically. I didn’t like our response. I will say I liked the response from our young guys: Jaylon Tyson, Tyrese Proctor, Thomas Bryant; that’s where I saw the fight. What the fight was. I saw the fight from our role as Jacon. You have to play. He was ready to play. That’s what we needed.

Unlike Christmas, Atkinson emphatically rocket bounce and the lack of required strength in his group. He kept coming back to the number of mistakes in the opening period that put Cleveland in trouble early.

“This is the NBA. These plays happen. They happen. But I didn’t like how it happened, I just have to be honest,” Atkinson said. “They happen, but (we’re) coming off of these last three games … two wins and a really good performance against the Knicks.”

“It’s difficult. It’s a worrying factor because it is.” the hov,” Cavs All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell added postgame. “It’s not about losing; I think it’s about how. We have to figure that out. I think it’s a factor of concern the hovand not losses specifically. If we matched their physicality or played 48 minutes of tough basketball and did all the different things like we did in New York and just didn’t come out on top, so be it. But to have a week where the process was really great and then to come here and play like this is definitely tough.”

The only word Mitchell could think of after the explosion was “disappointing.” He was adamant that all but Tyson, Proctor, Bryant and Craig Porter Jr. “didn’t match up in the fight.”

The Cavs didn’t have a starter top 16 points, and Mitchell matched that mark on 17 field goals. There was no juice and no cover on the rim, making it a tough night for the visitors. Kevin Durant was sensational and had 30 points in the third quarter. Rockets sophomore guard Reed Shepard was a target all night off the bench, Jabari Smith Jr. made timely plays and Steven Adams and Clint Capela controlled the glass.

“We have to look in the mirror, look in the mirror, see how you can contribute to this team, and go out there and compete at a high level,” Cavs All-Star guard Darius Garland he said, noticing his frustration. “But it’s something we can fix. It’s up to us, we play hard.”

Cleveland’s next chance to right the ship comes Monday night against one of the hottest teams in the NBA.

“On the other hand, we have another opportunity to figure it out against a tough San Antonio team,” Mitchell said. “So I think the only concern is how we lost (Saturday), but on the other hand, it’s like we’re going to be positive and what can we figure out for this upcoming stretch?”

“Be ready to play,” Garland added. “Have some energy. Be ready to play 48 minutes. Play hard. Play smart. Be ready to play.”

The The Cavs now have their work cut out for themwith the Spurs, Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets and Detroit Pistons next on the list.

“I love a challenge. We have to love a challenge,” Mitchell said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t go about our business on the ‘easy’ part of the schedule, so now we have to do it here. We have to accept the challenge, be ready for it. If we’re not, then (Saturday) will happen again. But we just have to be ready for the challenge and accept it.”