Playing without regulars Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland and Caris LeVert as they gear up for next weekend’s First Round matchup with the Knicks, the Cavaliers fell short in the final game of the regular season, a 106-95 decision to the Hornets on Easter Sunday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. 

Four of Charlotte’s starters notched double-figure scoring while the Cavaliers got the bulk of their scoring from the second unit. Not a single Cavs starter tallied double-digits on Sunday, but four reserves did so – paced by Sam Merrill, who finished with 17 points off the bench. 

On the afternoon, the backup guard – who signed with Cleveland in mid-March – went 6-for-12 from the floor, including 3-of-9 from long-range, adding four boards and a game-best three steals.

Danny Green followed up his 21-point performance on Thursday night in Orlando with a 13-point effort on Sunday, going 5-of-12 from the field, 3-of-10 from beyond the arc, adding four boards and a block in the loss. 

Raul Neto added 13 points of his own off the bench – going 4-of-9 from the floor to go with six assists and a steal in 21 minutes of work. 

Robin Lopez rounded out the Cavaliers in double-figures, finishing with 10 points on 4-for-10 shooting. 

Both Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen chose to start on Sunday, merely to keep themselves in a rhythm. Both played the entire first quarter and not again afterward – with Mobley finishing with six points and five boards and Allen tallying four points, six rebounds and a block. 

Charlotte’s Bryce McGowens and Mark Williams led all scorers – each netting 22 points in the win, with Williams doubling-up with a game-best 10 rebounds. 

NOTEWORTHY

24 … consecutive three-pointers that the Hornets missed to start Sunday’s contest. Since 1997-98, when play-by-play was first instituted, no other team has been held without a make in their first 24 attempts.

COURTESY CLEVELAND CAVALIERS MEDIA RELATIONS