NEW ORLEANS — Garrett Temple nailed four 3-pointers in a 3:50 span of the fourth quarter and rookie Herb Jones scored a career-high 26 points to lift the New Orleans Pelicans to a 108-104 comeback victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cavs led by as many as 23 points in the first quarter but could not ward off a strong three quarters by the Pelicans. Ricky Rubio had 27 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists for Cleveland (20-14) before injuring his left knee on a non-contact stop in the lane with 2:20 left. Rubio had to be carried off the court by teammates.
Rubio has been one of the brighter sports of the Cavaliers' surprisingly hot start, providing solid play and veteran leadership off the bench. Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff did not have an immediate update on the point guard's status after the game, but ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reports the 31-year-old will undergo an MRI Wednesday.
The loss of Rubio deals a serious blow to Cleveland's already thin guard core, with Collin Sexton out for the year with a torn meniscus and Darius Garland just placed in the NBA's health and safety protocols on Tuesday. The absence of a true point guard hurt the team in the final minutes, as the lineup struggled with shot selection despite multiple chances to tie things up in the waning seconds.
Evan Mobley did return from the protocols to score 22 points and Kevin Love added 24 off the bench. However, the Cavs were just 5 of 19 from 3-point range in the second half, with Mobley missing an open shot with five seconds left that would've tied the game.
With their season potentially at a crossroads, the Cavaliers will be off Wednesday before heading to Washington, D.C. to play the Wizards Thursday night.