Mitchell’s second-half rampage lifts Cleveland over Orlando

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Donovan Mitchell was a walking bucket during the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 119-105 victory over the Orlando Magic in the ongoing NBA regular season on Jan. 25, 2026.

After only scoring nine points in the first half, Mitchell put the team on his back, scoring 27 of his 36 points in the last two quarters, which helped the Cavaliers pull away for good.

Orlando was still within striking distance at the half and only trailed by seven points before receiving a shocking wrath from Mitchell, who went unconscious from the shooting field when the third-quarter buzzer sounded.

From a cold shooting spree, Mitchell quickly flipped the switch and torched the Magic with his insane shot-making, with most of the conversions coming from the shaded lane and the perimeter area.

Mitchell made up for his poor three-point shooting and decided to pressure Orlando’s frontcourt rotation with his aggressive drives to the basket.

After scoring three consecutive foul-counted layups, Mitchell concluded a 19-3 Cleveland run with back-to-back floaters and a step-back perimeter jumper.

In just a span of six minutes, Mitchell’s rejuvenated offensive performance put the Cavaliers ahead by 16 points and they never looked back, protecting their double-digit lead despite a quarter left to play.

Mitchell put up his best offensive performance for Cleveland since his 48-point outing on Dec. 13 against the Washington Wizards, delivering 36 points, nine assists, five rebounds, and two steals.

The daredevil guard struggled to shoot from downtown after only making two of his eight attempts but recovered in the paint to finish 15-of-30 from the field.

Aside from Mitchell’s superb scoring display, up-and-coming shooting guard Jaylon Tyson provided a steady presence for the Cavaliers and churned in 17 points built from an efficient 3-of-5 shooting from three-point range.

The win extended Cleveland’s winning streak to three straight games and the Cavaliers will gun for another win on Jan. 27 in an instant rematch against Orlando, this time on their home floor at Rocket Arena.