Schroder scored on a drive with 34.4 seconds left and James missed the potential clinching 3. “I’m happy our guys showed up and we were able to represent the way we know how to play Cavs basketball”.
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Kevin Love scored 26 points and tied his career-high with eight three-pointers to help Cleveland wrap up the 4-0 series victory. LeBron James and the Cavaliers, who also feature superb players in forward Kevin Love, and guard Kyrie Irving, dismantled Atlanta in this series with 77 three-pointers in the four games.
Kyrie Irving scored 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting during Sunday’s Game 4 win over the Hawks, adding eight assists, one 3-pointer, two rebounds, one block and two turnovers in 42 minutes.
The Atlanta Hawks again battled to the end but came up just short in a 100-99 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Cavaliers rank in the top three this postseason in uncontested 3-point attempts, as well as attempts from the corner, off catch-and-shoots and directly off passes.
The Cavs have not lost a game en route to the Eastern Conference finals. Toronto leads 2-1. “I love who we are, but I think our team can get better”.
“They just took it to another level”, Atlanta center Al Horford said.
But, James said, “Bazemore, being the athlete that he is, it’s kind of hard to gauge tip balls that time, and I didn’t want to tip it, he jump out in there and grab it and shoot it”. They became the first team to make at least 15 3-pointers in four straight games (regular season or playoffs). “I’m just trying to be consistent in what I do, and I know in any given moment, I can go off and get a few shots”. “They gave us everything they had, but we stuck with the game plan”, said head coach Tyronn Lue.
Wade tends to not line up for the pregame anthem ceremony without making his last shot, usually a bank shot from the right wing – even when only “The Star-Spangled Banner” is to played before home games. James tipped the ball towards the sideline, forcing Millsap to put a desperation shot that missed after the buzzer sounded.
The Cavaliers will face the victor of the Miami-Toronto series in the conference final.
Schroder led Atlanta with 21 points.
Now, with Irving fully recovered and Love looking more comfortable in his role, the Cavaliers breezed past Detroit in four straight games and are on the verge of sweeping the Hawks out of the playoffs for the second year in a row. After being outrebounded 55-28 in Game 3, the Hawks had a 42-41 edge on the boards.
Dennis Schroder led the Hawks with 21 points, while Paul Millsap chipped in with 19 points and nine rebounds.
The Cavaliers continued their barrage from three-point range, a common thread throughout the series, with 10 first half makes from downtown – finishing with 16 for the game.
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CLEVELAND (100): James 10-23 0-3 21, Love 9-25 1-1 27, Thompson 2-3 1-2 5, Irving 8-16 4-5 21, Smith 1-4 0-0 3, Jefferson 1-3 0-0 3, Frye 3-6 0-0 8, Dellavedova 1-2 0-0 2, Shumpert 3-6 2-2 10.
