On their home floor, where they have been dominant all postseason, the Cavs recovered from a 33-point loss in Game 2 and yanked their season from the brink of disaster following back-to-back blowouts in the Bay Area. The reports assess all whistles and notable non-calls. “They punched us in the mouth right away”, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said after the game. Silver says fans expect the accountability they provide. Klay Thompson had just 10 points and went scoreless in three of the four quarters.
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Stephen Curry is 1 for 5 with three turnovers, three fouls and two points. Curry went 0-of-3 in the first quarter, picking up two fouls and turning the ball over twice.
Klay Thompson returns and unleashes a smooth crossover on Tristan Thompson. He also has eight points. The Cavs had a much easier time scoring against the Warriors’ traditional line-up – shooting over 70% in both the 1st and 3rd quarters, including a cumulative +15 run against the starting five in just 14 total minutes. “Just didn’t go out and execute the way I wanted to”.
“Not a whole lot”, Kerr said in Popovichian fashion.
You know the storyline, that LeBron had to dig deep and uncork another one of his instant classic playoff performances to get the Cleveland Cavaliers back into the NBA Finals. But he made 7 of 9 shots to lead the way for a desperate Cleveland team.
He tallied 32 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, two blocks and one steal.
“They came out and played like a team with a sense of desperation, like their season was on the line”.
Also, Kyrie was on fire, as he torched Stephen Curry early. And Klay Thompson limped off the court after taking a knee to the thigh from Timofey Mozgov. They don’t play as loose and the game doesn’t feel as natural.
He obviously fears Richard Jefferson, who before Wednesday night last made a NBA Finals start 13 years ago.
The Warriors have looked sluggish early. Golden State struggled throughout.
But as he showed in Game 3, when it is working, he can singlehandedly swing a game.
Warriors: Are 0-4 in Game 3s in these playoffs.
What happened Wednesday night must be all about Kevin Love? He still holds the record for most consecutive seasons (23) as a head coach with one National Basketball Association team.
Cleveland has a new villain.
Green finished with six points, seven rebounds and seven assists on 2-of-8 shooting. Green was fined for kicking Oklahoma City’s Steven Adams in the groin during Game 3.
Golden state forward Anderson Varejao is back at Quicken Loans Arena on a game night, just in a different uniform.
That’s the problem. Curry and the Warriors are thinking too much. The Warriors high pick-and-roll action, which had previously generated lay-ups and dunks by exploiting Cleveland’s overplay of Curry and Thompson (along with their general defensive confusion) suddenly wasn’t producing the same quality looks. Kerr became emotional before the game when paying his respects to Sean Rooks, his former Arizona teammate who died Tuesday at the age of 46.
“It’s the NBA”, Kerr said. “He always had a smile on his face. heart of a teddy bear. I’m devastated for his family, especially his kids”. And he responded like it was Game 6 of the 2012 Eastern Conference finals.
The Biels were like many Clevelanders – on edge.
“I’m going to take the day off and get healthy”.
“I’m not going to tell you“, the Cleveland coach said when asked how he would use Love in Game 4, if he’s cleared. “It’s been a long time”. A game the team needed to have in front of its home crowd. Smith nailed a shot from halfcourt at the end of the second quarter, but the shot came after the horn and was waved off. Lue said he doesn’t pay any attention to the all the outside second-guessing about his lineups. “But that’s the protocol”.
He’s still hopeful on getting his hands on the gold one. In the 17 minutes the Warriors played Draymond Green at center on Wednesday, the Warriors played Cleveland to a draw. “I just try to be a great teammate”.
Carter was introduced by Shane Battier, who was wearing one of his Miami Heat championship rings.
“Being here is pretty awesome as well”, Carter said.
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Cavaliers: James has 82 career 30-point games in the playoffs, third most all-time. No team in National Basketball Association history has won a series after falling into that deep of a hole in the playoffs.
