Isaac Okoro tallied 18 points in his NBA preseason debut, including the go-ahead basket with 0.3 seconds left to send the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 107-104 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Saturday night.
To set up the opportunity, Okoro was matched up on Pacers guard TJ McConnell on defense with the score tied up at 104 points apiece. Once Okoro forced the stop, he immediately sprinted down the court and was hit by teammate Damyean Dotson in transition to finish the tough layup.
Okoro was fouled on the play and sank the free throw to make it a three-point game. On the other end, the Pacers were unable to get a clean shot off in time and the Cavaliers held on to win the game as time expired.
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Okoro erupted for 16 points alone in the fourth quarter to help the Cavaliers erase an 11-point deficit. He went a perfect 3-of-3 from 3-point range in the final period while he sank all four of his free-throw attempts to cap off an incredible debut game.
The fifth overall pick earned the start and finished the contest by shooting 6-of-9 from the field, including 2-of-4 from 3-point range, while he added three steals in 32 minutes. He turned in the best performance yet of the preseason by a rookie and it resulted in a win for his team.
Cleveland returns to action on Monday vs. the Pacers once again.
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