Cavaliers deny Warriors shot at finals perfection

THE Warriors’ chance at playoff perfection died right before the finish line. Now their shot at redemption will have to wait at least a few more days.

In one of the wildest NBA games in recent memory, the Cavaliers grabbed a huge lead and staved off a sweep during an emotional – and often unhinged – second half, finishing off the Warriors 137-116, to move this series to 3-1 heading back to Oakland.

Kyrie Irving led the Cavs with 40 points, while LeBron James added 31 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds.

In their three previous game fours during these playoffs, all sweep-completers, the Warriors pounced on dejected Western Conference opponents, leading the Blazers by 23, the Jazz by 22 and the Spurs by 12 after the first quarter.

It was the opposite yesterday night. The Cavaliers surged from the tip, scoring 14 points in the first 21⁄ minutes, spiking out to their first double-digit lead of the series in a flash.

Then the Warriors fouls started to pile up. They had 10 in the first six minutes. Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala and Stephen Curry all had two fouls in the first 10 minutes.

The Cavaliers shot 22 free throws in the first quarter against the NBA’s best defence during these playoffs.

The Cavaliers made 14 free throws, hit seven of their 12 firstquarter threes, made 14 of their 24 shots and scored a record 49 first-quarter points, jumping out to a 16-point lead against a Warriors team staggering from the biggest punch they’ve faced in these playoffs.

Things stabilised in the second quarter, as the Cleveland lead fluctuated between 10 and 20. The Warriors scored 35 points in the quarter, but their defence conceded another 37 to the Cavaliers, who put up 86 in the first half, leading by 18 at the break, and finished with a finals record 24 made threes.

Some of it was due to breakdowns, but plenty of it was ridiculous shot-making by a desperate Cavaliers team, determined to not let the Warriors celebrate on their home floor for a second time in three years. They hit 13 threes in the first half – more than they had in any of the first three games – and LeBron James got his most help of the series, including six threes from Kevin Love (23 points), solid minutes from Richard Jefferson and a second straight monster offensive night from Kyrie Irving.

The Cavaliers point guard made 15 of his 27 shots, often shedding Klay Thompson’s defence to drop crazy shots from tough angles. Combined with game three, he made 31 shots on 54 attempts after making only 18 of 45 during the first two games in Oakland.

But if there’s one silver lining for the Warriors in a nightmare game four, it’s that they exited the hostile and often emotional environment without an incident that could lead to a suspension of one of their main guns, like what happened to Green a season ago, completely altering the finals.

But now the series shifts back to Oakland, where all the 3-1 ghosts and jokes await the Warriors as they try to finish this playoff run at redemption.

Curry scored 14 points to go along with 10 assists, and Draymond Green finished with 16 points and 14 rebounds. The Mercury News