CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kevin Love made two free throws with 1.2 seconds left and the Cleveland Cavaliers held on beat the Charlotte Hornets 102-101 on Friday night following a wild fourth quarter.
Jarrett Allen had a career-high 29 points and 22 rebounds and Love had 22 of his 25 points in the second half as the Cavs (32-21) overcame a bizarre technical foul on bench player Ed Davis with 4:44 left in the fourth. Things got strange when Davis, who was on the Cavs' bench in warmups and never played in the game, interfered with Terry Rozier's 3-point attempt by swatting at the ball, apparently thinking the play was over. Replays awarded Rozier a made 3 and he drained the technical free throw for a 4-point play.
Things quickly began to unravel after than, as Cleveland squandered a 17-point fourth-quarter lead and trailed by three with just 46.2 seconds to go. Down one with the clock winding down, Brandon Goodwin air-balled a jumper, but Love was able to snatch it and draw that foul that led to his two makes at the charity stripe.
The Hornets (28-25) had one final chance with 1.2 left, but Goodwin nabbed Gordon Hayward's inbound pass as time expired. Goodwin, who saw extended playing time with All-Star Darius Garland missing his third straight game, finished with 12 points, nine assists, and four steals.
The Cavaliers moved back into a tie for fourth in the Eastern Conference with a victory, and will head home to play the Indiana Pacers Sunday evening.