But I also think had Love made even three more shots, the Cavs would’ve won by 20 and never surrendered an 18-point lead.
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Coach Tyronn Lue made a decision to pull out their “Big Three”, LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, in the third quarter and let the players from the bench face the struggling Hawks.
From the outset, the Cavaliers were on a tear, and afterward LeBron James struggled to explain the “special night”.
We Atlantans saw J.R. Smith torch the Hawks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals last season, but this was special even by his freakish standards.
James made four 3s and scored 27 points for the defending conference champions, who were able to rest their starters for the entire fourth quarter.
After making Cleveland’s 16th 3-pointer in the first half, the easygoing Smith skipped back on defense like a little kid on a schoolyard playground as Cleveland’s towel-waving fans danced with delight and smelled blood.
The Cavs dropped 20 3-pointers in a first-round win over Detroit and they’ve been among the league’s most rapid-fire teams all season.
With no way of knowing what Game 2 would hold, Lue did emphasize pregame the types of shots the Cavs were looking for.
The Cavaliers completely dominated the game (up 40 points at one point) courtesy of the record breaking barrage from downtown that drained 25 three pointers (10 different players shot from deep to contribute to the record).
Dahntay Jones made it nine Cavs players with a three when he broke the league record by hitting No. 24 with 2:22 left, and Mo Williams made it 10 players with a 3-pointer by hitting No. 25 soon after.
Smith was playing on Kyle Korver’s hip once again, as the Hawks’ three-point marksman had just seven points on 3-of-7 shooting. The Hawks losing DeMarre Carroll at small forward over the offseason was considered a major loss, and in this series, we’re seeing just how much they miss him.
The Hawks have been dealt a hard matchup that has led to a disappointing start of this second round series. Their ostensibly antiquated regular-season offense has suddenly morphed into a death-by-whack-a-mole torture chamber, spearheaded by lineups that feature 3-point shooting at every position and some of the most lethal talent in the basketball universe.
National Basketball Association teams are required to send at least one player to the postgame news conference, but none of the Hawks was eager to step to the podium. “At times you’re not going to make shots”. The Cavaliers managed to beat the record by the Golden State Warriors of 21 three-pointers on April 24 against the Houston Rockets. “He’s got a handsome shot and when he’s making shots, it becomes contagious and it’s hard for us to get beat”.
“They had a hell of a night”, Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said. The Cavs had 74 points at the half in Game 2; the Hawks had 70 after three quarters. By the time they got to halftime, they had 18 3-pointers. “We don’t want to be labeled that”.
With the win, the Cavs take a strong series lead up 2-0 as they head to Atlanta on Friday to face the Hawks at Phillips Arena.
At that point, the Cavs had more 3-pointers than Atlanta had field goals. ‘They shot (really well) in Game 1, but that was wonderful’.
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“We will just continue to keep sharing the ball”.
