CLEVELAND -- — Ty Jerome scored 27 points in the first half and finished with a career-high 29 as the Cleveland Cavaliers never trailed in a 128-100 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night.
Jerome, starting in place of injured point guard Darius Garland , had 20 points in the second quarter and buried seven 3-pointers before halftime. Cleveland is off to the best start in franchise history at 16-1.
Georges Niang added 20 points and first-round pick Jaylon Tyson had 16 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists in his first pro start for the Cavaliers. Jarrett Allen had 16 points and 11 rebounds.
Rookie forward Antonio Reeves , who averaged 2.9 points per game, scored 34 points, and Brandon Boston Jr . had 14 points for the injury-riddled Pelicans.
Takeaways Pelicans: Elfrid Payton was signed earlier in the day and appeared in his first NBA game since May 15, 2022 with Phoenix. Coach Willie Green started the 30-year-old point guard, who posted 11 points, five rebounds, eight assists and four turnovers.
Cavaliers: Cleveland bounced back from a 120-117 loss in Boston on Tuesday and led by as many as 34 points to remain unbeaten through nine home games. Donovan Mitchell only played 20 minutes and Evan Mobley logged just 18.
Key moment Jerome drained three long 3-pointers in a 62-second span in the second quarter, turning Cleveland’s single-digit lead into a 67-51 advantage. The combined distance of the 3s was 101 feet.
Key stat New Orleans’ top-six scorers -- averaging a combined 110.5 points -- were out with injuries, forcing it to use all three of its two-way players. Forward Brandon Ingram sat out his first game with a bilateral ankle sprain.
Up next The Pelicans host Golden State on Friday, and the Cavaliers continue their three-game homestand Sunday against Toronto.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
CLECP C. Porter Jr.
DM D. Mitchell
EM E. Mobley
GN G. Niang
JA J. Allen
JT J. Thor
JT J. Tyson
LT L. Travers
TJ T. Jerome
TT T. Thompson
NOPAR A. Reeves
BB B. Boston
BJ Boston Jr.
EP E. Payton
JC J. Cain
JG J. Green
JR J. Robinson-Earl
JE Jemison
KM K. Matković
TJ T. Jemison III
YM Y. Missi
CLE/NOP the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur