Game 2 is a reminder that any series against the Cavaliers was never going to be easy.
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As for the Hawks, the strategy following Game 1 seemed to be limit LeBron James’s points in the paint, which cost them in a close fourth quarter.
Regardless of labels, at their current rate, the Cavaliers are legitimate threats to win the first National Basketball Association championship in team history.
The Cleveland Cavaliers launched a bombing raid on a helpless Atlanta Hawks, hitting a record 25 three-pointers in a game-two victory in their NBA Eastern Conference semi-final series.
Game 3 of the best-of-seven series is Friday at Atlanta. JR Smith led the barrage from beyond the arc with seven overall as 10 Cleveland players made three pointers in the second round postseason game. The Cavs’ continued to make two-thirds of their three-pointers, knocking down 10-of-15 in the second quarter to shatter the previous record of 12 three-pointers in one half of a playoff game, a mark set just 10 days prior by the Golden State Warriors.
The Cavs were also one of the best three-point shooting teams during the regular season, and they have the personnel to do it. If a team can’t make the three with some degree of efficiency, it cannot survive.
Despite their success Wednesday, James insists that making threes isn’t their identity. “We don’t want to be labelled that”, he said. “We’re making the right play”. “Regardless of how amusing it may look to you, I feel as if I can make it and when I get that opportunity, I’m going to shoot it and I’m going to make it”.
When it was all said and done, the Cavaliers held a 30-point lead for the majority of the game and went on to set the record for the most three-pointers made in a single playoff game in National Basketball Association history.
You can forgive Bazemore for not knowing the exact number of 3-pointers being dropped on his team’s head, each one stinging more and more until the Hawks just went numb.
J.R. Smith knocked down 3-pointers with a man in his face and some falling backward off-balanced. Smith celebrated with a skip/strut to the other end of the floor without breaking stride.
Atlanta’s awful execution and communication on defense enabled the Cavs to enjoy a historic night en route to a 123-98 demolition.
“I don’t think that’s us”, said the Cavs star, who finished with 27 points in a mere 28 minutes and chipped in four of the 25 triples. When we’re sharing and we’re playing at a high pace and getting stops and everyone touches it, it becomes contagious.
“When J.R.’s making shots, it’s great to see”, Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue said. Several of those looks were tough, but the Cavaliers were able to shoot so well in part because the Hawks collapsed on dribble penetration to allow open shots from the perimeter. The team posted on its official Twitter account, “If you take away their 3s, we’re right in this”. Atlanta pumped its numbers up in garbage time but scored just 38 points in the first half. Smith drained 7 of 13 3-pointers and didn’t even play in the fourth quarter.
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When he was asked to clarify if he meant something else, Barkley sharply responded that he indeed said the Hawks need to get a Cavs player out of the game. They’re obviously a team that’s put together well.
