Donovan Mitchell scores 34 points to propel Cavaliers to 129-113 victory over Suns

CLEVELAND (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 34 points, Darius Garland added 19 and the Cleveland Cavaliers pulled away in the fourth quarter to defeat the Phoenix Suns 129-113 on Wednesday to snap their four-game winning streak.

It was Mitchell's 18th 30-point game this season, third-most in the league, after he had only 10 points in Monday night's win at San Antonio. The All-Star guard — fourth in the league in scoring at 29.7 points per game — was 10 of 18 from the field, including four 3-pointers, and also had 10 rebounds and seven assists in 30 minutes.

Jaylon Tyson had 18 points and Sam Merrill added 16. Evan Mobley (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Jarrett Allen (16 points, 11 rebounds) both had double-doubles.

Cleveland has won two straight and improved to 19-16 after going 7-7 in December.

Devin Booker led Phoenix with 32 points, including 20 in the third quarter as the Suns rallied from a 67-54 halftime deficit to get within two late in the quarter. Dillon Brooks had 20 points, all in the first half, and Collin Gillespie added 17.

After Phoenix got within 91-89 on a pair of free throws by Jordan Goodwin, the Cavaliers regained control with a 24-5 run as Mitchell scored eight points and Tyson added six. Cleveland was 10 of 13 from the field while Phoenix went 2 of 10.

Cleveland's largest lead was 24 points at 125-101 with less than four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

Phoenix had an 8-5 lead before the Cavaliers scored 16 straight points, including four straight 3-pointers.

The Suns go into 2026 with a 19-14 record after going 7-5 in December.

Suns: Host the Sacramento Kings on Friday.

Cavaliers: Host the Denver Nuggets on Friday.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Phoenix Suns forward Ryan Dunn, center, shoots between Cleveland Cavaliers center Evan Mobley (4) and guard Craig Porter Jr. (9) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen, right, shoots as Phoenix Suns center Mark Williams, left, defends in the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Craig Porter Jr. (9) dunks over Phoenix Suns guard Jamaree Bouyea, right, in the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Darius Garland (10) passes around Phoenix Suns forward Ryan Dunn (0) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) catches a pass next to Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks, center, forward Royce O'Neale (00) and center Mark Williams (15) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A judge on Thursday handed down an extraordinary prison sentence — nearly 42 years — to the former leader of a Minnesota nonprofit who was convicted in a staggering $250 million fraud case that helped ignite an immigration crackdown by the Trump administration.

Aimee Bock ran Feeding Our Future, which had claimed it helped provide millions of meals to children in need during the pandemic. The U.S. Justice Department, however, said she was atop the “single largest COVID-19 fraud scheme in the country.”

“I understand I failed. I failed the public, my family, everyone,” Bock said in federal court.

After the hearing, authorities held a news conference to announce charges against 15 more people accused of fraud in receiving federal payments for a variety of social services administered through Minnesota's state government.

“We will claw back every dollar you have stolen from the American people,” Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald declared.

President Donald Trump used the fraud cases against Bock and many others to initially justify a massive surge of federal officers to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area last winter, leading to pushback from residents and the deaths of two people.

Bock had long proclaimed her innocence but was convicted last year of conspiracy, fraud and bribery.

Her nonprofit was at the center of a fraud network that included a web of partner organizations, phony distribution sites, kickbacks and fake lists of children supposedly being fed, prosecutors say. Dozens of people, many from the state’s large Somali community, have been convicted in a series of overlapping food fraud cases that have spent years in the courts.

Bock and co-conspirators enriched themselves with international travel, real estate purchases, luxury vehicles and other lavish spending, the government said.

“This case has changed our state forever,” Joe Thompson, formerly the lead prosecutor in the case, said outside the courtroom. “Aimee Bock did everything she could to earn this long sentence.”

Bock's lawyer, Kenneth Udoibok, argued for no more than three years in prison, saying she had provided key information to investigators. He argued that Bock had been unfairly painted as the mastermind and insisted that two co-defendants were responsible for running the scams.

Meanwhile, in a fresh batch of criminal cases filed in Minnesota, the government said the alleged fraud involved $90 million across seven state-managed Medicaid programs.

The targets include Fahima Mahamud, who was CEO of Future Leaders Early Learning Center, a childcare center in Minneapolis. Over three years, Mahamud’s organization was reimbursed approximately $4.6 million for services on behalf of people who didn’t make a required copayment, prosecutors allege.

A message seeking comment from her lawyer was not immediately returned Thursday. Mahamud was charged separately in February with fraud related to meals. She has pleaded not guilty.

Two other people were charged with conspiring to get $975,000 in Medicaid subsidies for housing services that were not provided. They’re expected to plead guilty in June, according to a court filing.

Two additional people were accused of receiving $21.1 million by billing Medicaid for autism therapy that was either unnecessary or not provided. Investigators said the two paid families as much as $1,500 per child per month to add their names to the program and get reimbursement.

“We will not allow criminals to treat children as billing opportunities as American taxpayers foot the bill,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Trump, who has long derided Somalis, last year blasted Minnesota as “a hub of fraudulent money laundering activity.” He also criticized the leadership of Gov. Tim Walz, the Democrats’ vice presidential nominee in the 2024 election.

“Somali gangs are terrorizing the people of that great State, and BILLIONS of Dollars are missing. Send them back to where they came from,” Trump wrote on social media.

Bock is white and the U.S. Attorney’s Office says the overwhelming majority of defendants in the cases are of Somali descent. Most are U.S. citizens.

The immigration surge led to repeated protests and confrontations between residents and federal officers and resulted in the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

AP reporters Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, and Ed White in Detroit contributed.

FILE - Aimee Bock, founder and executive director of the nonprofit organization Feeding Our Future, arrives at the Minneapolis federal courthouse with her attorney, Ken Udoibok, right, on March 19, 2025, in Minneapolis. (Kerem Yücel/Minnesota Public Radio via AP, File)