Scottie Barnes leads charge in statement win against Cleveland

"After their early season struggles, Toronto set out last night to prove that they could punch up at one of the leading teams in their conference. Toronto had already beaten Cleveland prior to last night's game, but that was without many of their top players. In this game, Cleveland would be near full strength, and Toronto was still able to dominate this game.The game opened up pretty muddy, both sides began 3/9 from the field, and were going nowhere fast. Plenty fast break possessions from both sides, but not much reward reaped from it in the early minutes.Toronto's offense began to stall ever more as the reserves came in, Cleveland went into a zone defense and Toronto had trouble breaking it. Cleveland went on a 10-3 run to earn a 26-17 lead, which included a dazzling spinning floater from Donovan Mitchell through contact."

"Jamal Shead's imprint on this game was very prevalent, he had a nice pass to Brandon Ingram in the dunker's spot after a drive for a layup, and on the next possession he banked in an end of the clock triple to cut the lead to 1. Toronto answered Cleveland's run with a 9-0 run of their own, Cleveland's offense was much less potent without a true center in. Mamu came off the bench and had an immediate impact, he took the ball coast to coast for a layup and hit a semi-transition three to keep this game within one possession. Scottie Barnes led the team with 7 early points, and he was everywhere on defense as well, recording 3 blocks in the opening period alone.Although they weren't receiving much contribution from RJ Barrett and Ingram, Toronto's offense was still flowing well."

Toronto faced a near-full-strength Cleveland and opened the game with poor shooting from both teams, each starting 3/9 from the field. Fast break opportunities failed to convert early as Toronto’s offense stalled when reserves entered and Cleveland shifted to a zone. Cleveland built a 26-17 lead, fueled by free throws and a spinning floater from Donovan Mitchell. Jamal Shead sparked a Toronto response with key scoring and playmaking, and a 9-0 run followed. Bench player Mamu delivered immediate impact, and Scottie Barnes provided scoring and rim protection, while Toronto’s ball movement generated open triples.

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