Cleveland, OH
Hornets Roar Back In 4th Quarter, Beat Cavs To Finish Season Again
For the second consecutive year, the Charlotte Hornets closed out their regular season schedule with a double-digit comeback victory in Cleveland on a Sunday afternoon. And though it was another tough injury-plagued campaign, the 120-110 win, at the very least, allowed Head Coach Steve Clifford to end his NBA coaching career on a positive note.
Things weren’t quite as positive for the Cavaliers, who missed out on a chance to clinch a top-three Eastern Conference seed, which sealed a first-round date with the fifth-seeded Orlando Magic in the 4-5 matchup. Charlotte, which played almost entirely reserves, closed the year with wins in three of its final six outings, all of which came against postseason-bound teams.
Cleveland used a 14-0 run and some airtight interior defense to take a 33-24 lead through the opening 12 minutes. The Hornets kept moving the ball and ran just about every chance they got in the second, winning the frame by eight to enter halftime down one. With the East’s second or third seed still very much in play, Cleveland kept its foot on the gas and knocked down 6-of-7 third-quarter 3-point attempts to retake an eight-point advantage with 12 minutes to go.
Down 13 at the 10:09 mark of the fourth following a rare 3-pointer from Cleveland center Damian Jones, Charlotte launched a quick 12-3 run to get back within four. An Isaiah Mobley layup briefly curbed the Hornets’ momentum, which immediately resurfaced with a game-ending 18-2 surge over the final six-and-a-half minutes of play. The visitors forced seven turnovers for 11 ensuing points in the closing quarter, which they won decisively, 32-14 (fewest fourth-quarter points allowed by the Hornets since giving up 13 in Denver on Dec. 23, 2021).
“I thought those guys had a good attitude,” said Clifford following the win. “One o’clock starts are also always different. Last game of the year, but they put a lot into it, and I was happy for them. These last 25, 30 games, we’re out of it (playoffs) and we had a really difficult schedule. I’m really proud of all of them. They hung in there, the attitude they had, we kept getting better, we practiced well, and we played some good games.”
Nick Smith Jr. (24; career-best 6-of-11 from 3-point range), JT Thor (20; career-high nine rebounds), Marques Bolden (14; career-high four blocks), and Amari Bailey (11) all established new career-high points totals, with Leaky Black (11) tying his. Bryce McGowens had a season-high 18 points, with Tre Mann (11) making it seven Hornet players in double figures. Charlotte shot 50.5%, 47.5% from 3-point range (19-of-40) and dished out a season-high 36 assists.
Said Thor, “I came in thinking we’ve got everything to play for even though we’re not in the playoffs. Young guys got a lot of opportunity today and that’s all that mattered. Coach Clifford has taught us how to be a pro. He refers a lot to the older days and how those guys worked throughout the season. He said the same thing to us before the game and we got the dub.”
Cleveland lost the season series with the Hornets for the first time since 2018-19. Max Strus notched his first-ever NBA triple-double, finishing with 14 points – 4-of-6 from 3-point range – 10 rebounds and a career-high 11 assists before checking out midway through the fourth. Georges Niang had a team-high 16 points off the bench, with big men Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen also scoring 14 for the Cavaliers, who have now dropped three of four with Charlotte.
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – A woman was found dead in the backyard of a home on the city’s West side Friday morning.
Officers responded to the 3400 block of Bosworth Rd. around 9 a.m. for a welfare check.
This is in the city’s West Boulevard neighborhood.
When officers arrived at the home, they found the victim.
The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Officer will now determine the victim’s name and cause of death.
A child connected to the woman has been located and confirmed safe, said Cleveland police.
Police added the circumstances regarding the death remain under investigation.
Copyright 2026 WOIO. All rights reserved.
This forecast is outdated and inaccurate. Get the latest forecast here.
CLEVELAND (WJW) — (WJW) — The National Weather Service has extended its EXTREME HEAT WARNING for all of Northeast Ohio.
It will remain in effect until 8 p.m. on Friday, July 3, in Ashland, Ashtabula, Crawford, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Holmes, Huron, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning Medina, Ottawa, Portage, Richland, Sandusky, Stark, Summit, Trumbull and Wayne counties; and until 10 p.m. Friday, July 3, in Carroll, Coshocton and Tuscarawas counties.
The heat waves continues! An EXTREME HEAT WARNING will remain in effect through 8 p.m. Friday. Heat indices could top 105 degrees during the hottest time of day on Friday.
Once again, there will not be much relief from the heat and humidity overnight. Tonight lows will be in the mid to upper 70s again. Feeling warmer with the higher humidity. Mostly clear skies.
Friday will be the last sweltering summer day before the heat starts to back off for the Fourth of July holiday weekend. There is the chance of rain and storms Friday evening, around 7pm that could go through the late evening. This may impact some 4th of July celebrations on Friday. Any storm that pops up we’ll have to watch for the potential of gusty winds, heavy downpours and large hail.
This is what the radar could look like by the time some Fireworks celebrations are expected Friday evening. We have a level 2 out of 5 chance of any storm turning severe, meaning that 1 or 2 have the chance.
The upper-level ridge, or heat dome, will start to breakdown on Friday. This means two things. The first is it will go from being very hot and humid to being very warm and humid. The second thing is the chance of rain and threat of storms will return.
The Fourth of July holiday weekend will be far from a washout! There will be more dry time than time with downpours and storms. However, clusters of downpours and storms will move through Northeast Ohio at times. This means some Fourth of July events, backyard BBQs, pool parties, and firework shows could be impacted by rain and storms.
With all the heat and humidity around, any downpours or storms that develop could be strong and produce gusty winds, small hail, torrential rain, and lightning. Here’s the latest 8 Day Forecast:
Keep up with FOX 8 News for the latest weather updates.
Abdullah Mason and Albert Bell previewed their championship bout and came face to face at the press conference. The two fighters square off this Saturday, July 4, at Cleveland State University’s Wolstein Center.
- Cleveland-based 22-year-old southpaw Mason (20-0, 17 KOs) of Bedford, Ohio, defends his WBO lightweight title after claiming the vacant belt last November by decision against Sam Noakes.
- Toledo’s 33-year-old Bell (28-0, 9 KOs), who makes his first bid to become a champion, took the fight on short notice, replacing Joe Cordina of Wales.
See below what Mason and Bell had to say at the press conference on Thursday, following the open workout.
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Mason: I’m prepared to come out on top
“I’m excited. I’m super excited,” Mason said. “This is something me and my brothers have been looking forward to doing since we were amateurs. We fought on the same card a few times as amateurs, and all of us did it together on the last show my father threw here in Cleveland. It was huge.”
“At that time, we were like, ‘Yo, when we do this on a professional level, it’s going to be big for Cleveland.’ And now, it’s big for not only Cleveland, but it’s on TNT, so this is a national stage, a world stage with DAZN. I’m just excited to be able to put this show on with two of my brothers on the card.”
“I feel like it [fight vs Sam Noakes] was definitely a much-needed experience. That’s not the type of fight you have all the time in your career. It was something I felt like I had to do that night. Every fight is different, and it definitely gave me some insight into how I’ll approach the rest of my career. So, it was a much-needed experience and a great fight.”
“It [opponent change] was definitely unexpected. Albert Bell – that’s our guy from Toledo. But it’s boxing. You’ve got to be prepared for anything, and I’m prepared to come out on top. Everything happens for a reason.”
“One thing I do want to say is, I’m the youngest world champion in boxing for a reason, and I’m prepared to show that when I step into the ring.”
“Boxing is offense, defense and IQ, and you’ve got to put it together and tailor it to the person you’re stepping in the ring with. So, with the opponent switch, I just have to tailor it to the person across the ring from me, and that’s Albert Bell.”
Bell: We’re here now, and that’s all that matters
“I mean, it caught me by surprise,” Bell said on stepping in to face Mason on short notice. “It was an ideal opponent for me. I wasn’t really thinking about fighting Abdullah, especially not this soon. But everything made sense. I talked to my pops about it, and it made sense, so I stepped in to save the card, get my world title opportunity and put on a show for all of Ohio.”
“I mean, I get turned down by a lot of guys. I’m not saying that in a cocky way or trying to act like I’m the boogeyman or anything like that, but a lot of guys say no when my name comes across their table. I would’ve had the name I was supposed to have by now if it weren’t for that, but what’s delayed is not denied. We’re here now, and that’s all that matters.”
“I just need to be the best version of myself. I know he’s coming to be the best version of himself. He’s prepared, I’m prepared. We’re ready. We’re two top fighters, and we’re professionals. We’re both Ohioans. We’ve got history with each other, and it’s gonna be a show for sure.”
Mason vs Bell undercard
In the co-feature, Bruce Carrington (17-0, 10 KOs) of Brooklyn makes the first defense of his WBC featherweight title against Rene Palacios (19-0-1, 10 KOs) of Mexico.
On the undercard, Cleveland’s Delante “Tiger” Johnson (17-0, 8 KOs) takes on Canada-based Mexican Christopher Guerrero (16-0, 9 KOs) at welterweight.
Plus, Deric Davis (11-0, 10 KOs) of Fort Washington, Maryland, and Carlos Ramos (18-4-1, 10 KOs) of Spain by way of Ecuador, square off at lightweight.
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