Max Strus scores 24 points, Cavaliers rout Wizards 140 101

CLEVELAND (AP) — Max Strus led the Cleveland Cavaliers to their season-best scoring game by tallying up 24 points, resulting in a sweeping 140-101 victory against the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night. This marked the beginning of a two-game set. Playing for 24 minutes, Donovan Mitchell aided in ending Cleveland's two-game losing skid by scoring 22 points. With 21 points in 23 minutes, Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen, who garnered 17 points, 19 rebounds, and seven assists, had commendable performances. The two teams are set to cross paths again this coming Friday.

Cleveland ruled the rebounding game with a 62-36 edge. Tristan Thompson and Georges Niang contributed by capturing nine and eight boards respectively. Moreover, Niang scored 15 points as a bench player. The Cavs enjoyed a 53.5% shooting rate and accomplished a total of 20 3-pointer shots.

Washington's Kyle Kuzma managed to score 16 points for his team. However, the team, which currently holds the third-worst NBA record at 6-27, hasn't had back-to-back wins since the February-March 2003 season. Daniel Gafford, Mike Muscala, and Corey Kispert added 12 points each to the scoreboard for the Wizards.

Allen, a two-time East All-Star team member and 6-foot 11 center, has maintained an average of 21.2 points, 16.4 rebounds, and 6.0 assists in the past five games. Despite losing point guard Darius Garland (broken jaw) and power forward Evan Mobley (left knee surgery) until February, the Cavaliers managed to win 6 out of their 9 games.

The game started intensely with 14 lead changes in the first 10 minutes. It was not until Mitchell's halftime-buzzer 3-pointer shot that put Cleveland ahead by 67-55 that a team had a double-digit lead. Strus scored 21 points and succeeded with all of his 5 attempted 3s in the first half.