LeBron, Cavs top Raptors in Game 1 of East playoff series
CLEVELAND >> LeBron James resisted drinking some beer. He downed the Raptors again instead.
James grabbed a bottle of beer on the sideline while scoring 35 points, Kyrie Irving added 24 and the Cleveland Cavaliers picked up where they left off following a long layoff and throttled Toronto 116-105 on Monday night in the opener of their Eastern Conference semifinal.
The Cavs hadn’t played since April 23, when they completed a four-game sweep of Indiana. But the defending champions didn’t show signs of rust and were wellprepared to face the revenge-seeking Raptors, who lost to Cleveland in last year’s conference finals.
“That was the mystery coming into the game, how we would come out?” James said. “Obviously you prepare, you want to come out and play well, but you never know after an eight-day layoff. But the energy was phenomenal.”
Toronto dropped to 1-12 in playoff openers, and the Raptors got blown out in the playoffs for the fourth straight time in Cleveland.
Game 2 is Wednesday night.
Kyle Lowry scored 20 and DeMar DeRozan 19 for the Raptors, who were within seven in the third quarter before James dropped a 3-pointer, converted a threepoint play, drained another 3 and then considered washing down a brew — a moment he said wasn’t planned.
After drawing a foul on a missed layup, James playfully hopped toward the sideline, where a courtside server was passing by. The threetime champion reached and grabbed a beer bottle from her hand and brought it toward his lips before putting it back.
“I wasn’t going to run over our beer lady,” he said. “She had one and I grabbed it. I’m not a beer guy. If she had some red wine I would have probably taken a sip.”
With trade acquisitions Serge Ibaka and P.J. Tucker, this Toronto team seemed better equipped to beat Cleveland than the one which lost in six games in last year’s playoffs.
Trouble is, James only seems to be getting better and the Cavs are gaining speed.
“They were well-rested, flying around — almost like a half a step quicker than we were all night,” said Toronto coach Dwane Casey. “We’ve got to make adjustments as far as how we want to guard the paint and then get out to the 3. Offensively, get cleaner looks.”
Before the game, Casey talked about the big comebacks that have been a theme in these playoffs. The Raptors blew a 25-point lead to Milwaukee in the first round, while the Cavs overcame a 25-point deficit and pulled off the biggest second-half rally in playoff history.
“There’s no lead safe in the NBA,” he said.
That’s what happened to the Cavs in the first half as they built an 18-point lead only to watch the Raptors go on a 19-3 burst to pull within 41-39.