Evan Mobley Erupts Early, Cavs Sprint Past Mavs

Random dribbles following the Cavaliers’ 138-105 pounding of the host Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.

1. The headline number belongs to Evan Mobley. Twenty-nine points on 12-of-15 shooting in just 23 minutes. That’ll do.

2. Mobley came out firing, scoring 16 in the first quarter alone. By halftime, he had 23 and the game was already leaning heavily the Cavs’ way. So, yeah, this was supposed to be easy, and it was.

3. It matched his season high and served as a nice bounce-back after a quieter outing in Orlando. When Mobley is aggressive early, everything looks easier for the Cavs.

4. Donovan Mitchell added 24 points and barely broke a sweat doing it.

5. Mitchell was perfect on his first five shots and scored 12 in the third quarter, right when Dallas might have thought about making things interesting.

6. It never happened.

7. James Harden chipped in 17 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Another all-around night that continues to justify the blockbuster move that brought him here.

8. One Harden sequence in the third stood out. A long three over Cooper Flagg. Then a nasty crossover on Naji Marshall leading to a floater. He may be the old guy on the team, but there’s still plenty of pep in his step.

9. The Cavs shot 61.5 percent from the field and 47 percent from three. Those are video game numbers.

10. They led 38-21 after the first quarter and never looked back. They also hung 41 points in the third and stretched the lead to 35.

11. Defensively, they forced 11 Dallas turnovers. Seven different Cavs recorded a steal.

12. Keon Ellis also brought his usual energy starting for the injured Sam Merrill. Even with a big lead, Ellis was sprinting back on defense after made baskets. That sort of hustle tends to earn a coach’s trust.

13. Flagg led Dallas (22-45) with 25 points, though 19 came after the Cavs (41-26) had mostly seized control.

14. The Cavs (have now beaten the Mavericks seven straight times. And honestly, this one looked exactly like the type of game a contender should have against a struggling team. The Cavs took care of business early and never allowed the outcome to become a debate.

15. These two meet again Sunday in Cleveland. If Friday was any indication, the Cavs will be feeling pretty good about the rematch.

• BOX SCORE | Cavs 138, Mavericks 105