Cavaliers take command of Eastern Conference Finals with 112-99 win
BY STONE LEXINGTON
CAVALIERS BEAT WRITER
Kyrie Irving rode to the rescue, and LeBron James finished them off.
Trailing 57-47 at halftime in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals Tuesday night, the Cleveland Cavaliers knew they didn’t want to go back to Boston for Game 5 deadlocked in an even series. Irving’s third-quarter heroics and James’ fourth-quarter uprising made sure that didn’t happen, as the Cavs took a commanding 3-1 series lead with a 112-99 victory in Quicken Loans Arena.
“We knew going into halftime that we had to play our best basketball,” Irving said. “It was a conscious choice that we had to make on our end: how bad do we want it? We just had to keep it within striking distance, and we knew that our pressure, if we picked it up, we’re going to have them commit turnovers and make them feel uncomfortable.
“That’s when we’re at our best, when our intensity is at an all-time high and we’re playing with an unbelievable pace. It was one of those games we had to fight through, and we had to earn it.”
It didn’t look pretty for the Cavs with that double-digit halftime deficit. James picked up his fourth foul with more than six minutes remaining in the second quarter and was forced to the bench for the rest of the half. Meanwhile, Cleveland only received five points from its bench in the first half, all from Iman Shumpert.
Irving, though, had a superb first half and kept his flow going into the third quarter. When he sank a three-pointer with 3:42 remaining in the quarter, the Cavs had clawed back to trail 72-71. By the time Irving sank back-to-back layups less than two minutes later, Cleveland held a 77-72 lead and never relinquished the advantage. One of many highlights for Irving during the night was his three-pointer as the third quarter came to a close, giving the Cavs an 87-80 lead heading into the fourth.
Irving was spectacular in the third quarter, making nine of his 10 shots and scoring 21 of the Cavs 40 points in the quarter. His 21 points in the quarter is a franchise playoff record for points in a quarter, while the 42 total points he finished with is a playoff career-high.
After Irving’s third quarter explosion, it was James’ turn in the fourth. His layup to open the quarter gave Cleveland a good start to the period. His dunk, immediately followed by a jumper with 7:56 to play, helped Cleveland secure a double-digit advantage. Later in the quarter, as the Celtics cut the Cavs’ lead to a 103-97 margin on a Jonas Jerebko three-pointer with 4:20 remaining, James scored seven straight points to ice the game.
“Just trying to be aggressive,” James said. “Obviously, I couldn’t be as aggressive in the first half because of the foul trouble. If I’m on the floor, I have to be aggressive, try to make plays and help our team be successful.”
After one of his worst playoff showings in Game 3, the James train got back on track with a 34-point, five-rebound, six-assist performance in Game 4. The third member of Cleveland’s ‘Big 3’ wasn’t too shabby either, as Kevin Love totaled 17 points and a playoff career-high 17 rebounds.
The Cavs’ top trio helped the team win its 14th playoff game at The Q in their last 16 tries. Dating back to the 2015 postseason, the Cavs hold a 35-5 playoff record against East opponents and look to close out the Celtics in Boston on Thursday. A win would put the Cavs in their third straight NBA Finals with Irving and James leading the way.
“Kyrie Irving and LeBron James would be the two answers,” Celtics head coach Brad Stevens said when asked what went wrong. “They were unbelievable. Irving was incredible at the end of the third, and then obviously, LeBron had all those baskets in the fourth.”
POSTED 05/24/2017 00:14
Lake County Sentinel
