Final Score: Second half dooms Cavs in 112-92 loss to Bulls

It’s only one game in a long season. But in losing to the 112-92 Bulls at home on Sunday, the Cavaliers are, without question, very, very bad. And they might be the worst team in the league.

Cleveland and Chicago came into the game tied for the worst record in the league. With the loss, the Cavs have the worst record in the NBA, a half-game worse than the Suns, at 8-26.

Larry Nance Jr. led the Cavs with 20 points. Jordan Clarkson and Cedi Osman each added 17 points. Cavs rookie Collin Sexton finished the night 3-16 from the field.

Bulls forward Lauri Markkanen led all scorers with 31 points.

The Cavs lost their shot at beating the Bulls in the third quarter. Cleveland actually led 59-54 at halftime behind 12 points from Nance Jr. and 10 points from Clarkson. But in the third, the Cavs were doubled-up on 30-15 by the Bulls.

In that quarter, the Cavs made only 6 of their 17 shots. By comparison, the Bulls shot 12-18. Also worth noting: the Bulls entered Sunday the only team averaging fewer than 100 points per 100 possessions, per nba.com/stats.

Even worse for the Cavs was David Nwaba’s fourth quarter injury. Nwaba, who came into the game doubtful due to ankle injury, went down hard trying to block a shot from behind and had to be helped off the court. He has been one of the Cavs’ unquestioned bright spots this season, and if he’s out for any real time, the team will be worse off for it.

The Cavs next play on Wednesday in Memphis against the Grizzles. The game kicks off a three-game road trip for Cleveland. Tipoff is at 8 p.m.