Ohm Youngmisuk has covered the Giants, Jets and the National Football League since 2006.
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The changes nearly led to the Hawks picking up their first win of the series, as Atlanta led by as many as 11 in the third quarter and led by six heading into the fourth.
None of it mattered.
May 6 (Sports Xchange) – The 3-pointers keep falling and the Cleveland Cavaliers are sitting pretty.
The Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Atlanta Hawks 121-108 in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals at Philips Arena Friday.
The Hawks have to be all out of counters and moves after what felt like them throwing everything they had at James and the Cavaliers.
The Cavs’ 14th straight win in Eastern Conference playoff games puts them up 3-0 on Atlanta.
There was some grumbling from Hawks players after Game 2 about Cleveland continuing to shoot 3-pointers in the fourth quarter when the outcome was no longer in doubt.
Dennis Schroder had a big one for Atlanta in Game 1 with a match-high 27 points and also six assists, but wasn’t sighted almost as much in Game 2.
Kyle Korver provided a spark for the Hawks off the bench, as head coach Mike Budenholzer opted to start Thabo Sefolosha to help provide defense after Cleveland’s three-point barrage in Game 2.
LeBron James has been his usual productive self in both matches, recording 25 points in the first and 27 in the second to be Cleveland’s top scorer in both.
The Cavaliers, so careful with the ball with only eight turnovers in each of the first two games of this series, were uncharacteristically sloppy in Game 3 with 18 turnovers in the first three quarters. He ran hard off screens with one goal – to shoot.
Offense wasn’t a problem for the Cavaliers, as their least prolific quarter in the game was a 24-point effort in the second period.
Hawks center Al Horford seemed to have found his rhythm with a sense of urgency playing aggressive in the paint racking up 15 points in the first half.
Atlanta closed the second quarter on a 20-5 run and led 63-55 at halftime.
Cleveland’s Iman Shumpert threw down a one-handed dunk off a rebound in the first quarter. Thompson was 5-of-12 from the line through three quarters and the Cavs trailed, 91-85 with 12 minutes to play.
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But they couldn’t contain the Cavs in the fourth. He kicked to LeBron, who made an open 3-pointer.
