All three made crucial plays in important moments after the Pistons seemed poised to pull a stunning upset to start the series.
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“I thought the Big Three did a phenomenal job”, Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said.
But it wasn’t easy.
Love made two critical 3-pointers in the fourth quarter and the Cavs overcame a seven-point deficit by outscoring the Pistons 30-18 over the final 10:52. If you’re the Pistons, you throw 19-year-old rookie Stanley Johnson at him and hope for the best.
Van Gundy said after the game he was proud of the way his players handled themselves in the loss. “You’re in a playoff series, and I’m not really looking to stay close, that’s not my objective here”.
“I’ve never had a person grab my jersey and try to throw me to the floor and I come up on the wrong end of things like that”, Johnson told reporters on Monday.
The Pistons didn’t show any signs of fear early on and led 58-53 at halftime thanks to 10 3-poiners.
Some media outlets also pointed out that Van Gundy-coached teams (Miami, Orlando, Detroit) have had their share of success when facing teams with James on them, specifically the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals, when the Orlando Magic defeated the favored Cavaliers in six games.
Plus, James doesn’t even think he got many calls in Game 1.
At 6-foot-7 and 240 pounds, Johnson doesn’t lack for muscle or confidence despite his youth, matching up against the 6-foot-8, 250-pound James. He bounced back with nine in the second and shot 50 percent from the field in the quarter, hitting both of his 3-point attempts.
One way or another, Van Gundy’s logic wins out.
But it was Kevin Love who broke Detroit’s momentum by nailing three-pointers of his own during the dying minutes of the game, putting his team ahead by four points.
The Cavs held Andre Drummond to only 13 points. It’s usually the same, generic coachspeak that we get after the game, delivered with far less candor and personality. It was, to me, blatantly obvious.
If Game 1 was considered physical, Game 2 on Wednesday at The Q could up the ante.
Detroit led 78-76 at the end of the third quarter. Sunday marked LeBron James’ 179th career postseason game, tying him with Michael Jordan for 17th place in National Basketball Association history….
Much of the remaining prep time during practice will be spent on hammering out a game plan that takes the lessons from Game 1 into account.
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The Cavaliers got big contributions from their star players, with James recording 22 points and 11 assists, Love 28 points and 13 rebounds and Irving top scoring with 31 points. But if he beats the Pistons, those are two less Stans he’s gotta worry about going into the second round of the playoffs.
