Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson expressed extreme disappointment after his team suffered a 117-100 loss to the Houston Rockets on Saturday. That final score was generous, as the Cavs trailed by as many as 31 points in the fourth quarter and barely showed a pulse in their follow-up to a promising week of basketball.

“I rarely say this, but I thought the game was over in the first quarter,” Atkinson said postgame. “Their physicality, we weren’t ready for the fight. I don’t know how else to say it. Encouraged after the Knicks’ game because we were ready for the fight, but [Saturday], call it what you want. Christmas hangover? I have no idea. It’s hard for me to [describe]. It wasn’t the same team that played the other night against the Knicks.

“So it was the focus, right? You had eight [first-quarter] turnovers, then obviously, they just kind of manhandled us physically. I didn’t like our response. I will say I did love our young guys’ response: Jaylon Tyson, Tyrese Proctor, Thomas Bryant; that’s where I saw the fight. I saw the fight from our role players. Jaylon was the beacon [Saturday]. That’s how you’ve got to play. He was ready for the fight. He was ready for the physicality. He was ready for the game. I just highlighted him after the game. That’s what we needed across the board, and we didn’t get it.”

Unlike on Christmas Day, Atkinson emphasized the Rockets’ rebounding and his group’s lack of necessary force. He kept going back to the number of miscues in the opening period that put Cleveland in a problematic position early.

“This is the NBA. These performances happen. They do. But I didn’t like how it happened, I’ve just got to be honest,” Atkinson said. “They happen, but [we’re] coming off these last three games… two wins and a really good performance against the Knicks.”

“It’s tough. It’s a concern factor because it’s the how,” Cavs All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell added postgame. “It’s not the loss; I think it’s the how. We’ve got to figure it out. I think the concern factor is the how, not the losses specifically. If we matched their physicality or played 48 minutes of tough basketball and did all the different things like we did in New York, and we just didn’t come out on top, then so be it. But to have a week where the process was really great and then to come here and play like this is definitely tough.”

The only word Mitchell could think of after the blowout was “disappointing.” He was adamant that everybody besides Tyson, Proctor, Bryant, and Craig Porter Jr. didn’t “match the fight.”

The Cavs didn’t have a single starter who eclipsed 16 points, and Mitchell matched that figure on 17 shot attempts. There was no juice and a lid on the rim, which made it a rough night for the visitors. Kevin Durant was sensational and had 30 points through the third quarter. Rockets sophomore guard Reed Sheppard was on target all night off the bench, Jabari Smith Jr. made timely plays, and both Steven Adams and Clint Capela controlled the glass.

“Got to look at each other in the mirror, look at yourself in the mirror, see how you can contribute to this team, and come out there and compete at a high level,” Cavs All-Star guard Darius Garland said, noting his frustration. “But it’s something that we can correct. It’s on us, playing hard.”

Cleveland’s next opportunity to right the ship comes on Monday night against one of the hottest squads in the NBA.

“On the bright side, we’ve got another chance to figure it out against a tough San Antonio team,” Mitchell said. “So I think the concern is just how we lost [Saturday], but on the flip side, it’s like, we’ll be positive and what can we figure out for this upcoming stretch?”

“Be ready to play,” Garland added. “Have some energy. Be ready to play for 48 minutes. Play hard. Play smart. Be ready to hoop.”

The Cavs have their work cut out for them now, with the Spurs, Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets, and Detroit Pistons next on the docket.

“I love the challenge. We’ve got to love the challenge,” Mitchell said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t handle our business against the ‘easier’ part of the schedule, so now we’ve got to do it here. We’ve got to embrace the challenge, be ready for it. If we’re not, then [Saturday] will happen again. But we’ve just got to be ready for the challenge and embrace it.”