Dribbles: Cavs play great for half, survive the rest

Random dribbles following the Cavaliers’ 94-87 road win over the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday.

1. You really had to love what you saw from the Cavs.

2. In the first half.

3. With 24 minutes to go, the Cavs led by a 56-32 count. Yes, the Hornets managed just 32 points before halftime. The Cavs’ defense was good. Along with that, Charlotte couldn’t shoot straight.

4. Keep in mind that the Hornets entered the night with the NBA’s second-best offense over the past two weeks. So what the Cavs accomplished in the first 24 minutes was impressive.

5. The final 24 minutes were considerably less impressive.

6. Nevertheless, the Cavs averted a basketball disaster by doing just enough to get the win. And in this league, a win is a win is a win. As stated on the ESPN broadcast, the Cavs have now won eight of 12.

7. Evan Mobley was particularly good in the first half — when he recorded 13 points and 11 rebounds. He finished with 14 of each. In the final two quarters, he was just sort of out there. Part of that’s on him. Part of it is on everyone else.

8. Basically, the Cavs (25-20) continued their season-long trend of being all over the place, really good some nights and not so hot in others. You never know what you’re going to get from quarter to quarter.

9. Donovan Mitchell led the way with 24 points and a game-high six assists. He also committed a game-high eight turnovers.

10. The Cavs finished a miserable 8-of-40 on threes. That was still better than the Hornets, who went 8-of-47.

11. There were times I started to wonder if the rim might cringe with fear.

12. Hornets guard LaMelo Ball led the charge in that department — as he finished 1-of-15 shooting. You read that right. Fifteen attempts. One make. Oh, and 0-of-10 on threes.

13. Ball is a fine player, sometimes electric. But when you check out his form, it’s easy to think, “Does this guy ever make one?” The answer is yes. He makes plenty. But not on this night.

14. Jaylon Tyson did another nice job with 14 points and seven rebounds. Jarrett Allen was solid, too (13 points, nine rebounds). Dean Wade was strong defensively, also collecting nine boards. But the Cavs just got too sloppy in the second half. They committed 20 turnovers on the night.

15. Afterward, I sat there thinking, “Thank heavens it’s over.” Another three minutes … and who knows what we’d be saying today?

16. But again, it was a win. The Cavs stole two in Philadelphia last week. They got hammered at home against the Thunder. Then they won at Charlotte. So make it three wins in four games, all on the road.

17. See what I mean? Hard to figure out.

18. Anyway, it’s back home on Friday, against the Kings. It shouldn’t matter that Sacramento currently stinks. The Cavs lost at home to the Jazz last week.

19. At some point, this team may pull it completely together. That time has not yet arrived, but at least the final result is a little more promising. Most nights, anyway.