The Cleveland Cavaliers improved to 10-0 with an exclamation point, demolishing the Golden State Warriors 136-117 at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse on Friday.
Golden State came into Friday’s matchup with a 7-1 record, yet this was a mismatch from the start. The Cavs opened the game on a 20-2 run, putting the Warriors in a deep hole from the start and finishing the first quarter ahead 39-22.
At halftime, Cleveland held a 83-42 lead, setting a franchise record for first-half points. The Cavs shot 65% from the floor and 64% (14-for-22) on 3-pointers for the half.
Darius Garland led the Cavs with 27 points (shooting 6-for-10 on 3-pointers) and six assists. Evan Mobley followed with 23 points, four rebounds, four assists and two blocks. Ty Jerome added 20 points off the bench, hitting all three of his 3-pointers and Isaac Okoro scored added 16 points, shooting 4-for-6 from 3.
The Warriors played better in the second half, outscoring the Cavs 75-53. But the huge deficit was too much to overcome. Jonathan Kuminga scored 21 points, with Brandin Podziemski adding 14. Stephen Curry tallied 12 points, his lowest total of the season thus far.
Cleveland is the NBA’s last undefeated team this season after the Oklahoma City Thunder lost their first game of the season on Wednesday, 124-122, to the Denver Nuggets.
Interestingly, the last NBA team to start 10-0 during the past 20 seasons was the Warriors, who did so during the 2014-15 season. That team set a league record with a 24-0 start on their way to finishing 73-9, the best regular season record in NBA history. Yet Golden State lost to the Cavaliers and LeBron James in a seven-game NBA Finals.
The Cavs are now the fourth team to start 10-0 since 2000, joining the 2000-01 Philadelphia 76ers, 2002-03 Dallas Mavericks, and the 2014-15 Warriors. Altogether, 14 teams have started the season 10-0 or better in NBA history.
With an 8-0 start, Cleveland already set a franchise record for best start to a season. And Kenny Atkinson became the first head coach to begin a season 9-0 with his new team. They will attempt to extend their record to 11-0 on Saturday, hosting the Brooklyn Nets.