James, Cavaliers hold court, even East series
CLEVELAND — Lebron James knows the path to the NBA Finals better than anyone in today’s game.
And unless the Boston Celtics do something soon, he could get there again.
James bullied his way to 44 points, surpassed Kareem Abdul-jabbar atop a postseason list and helped the Cleveland Cavaliers even the Eastern Conference Finals at 2-2 on Monday night with a 111-102 victory over the Celtics, who are looking forward to getting home before their adoring fans.
Pushed by a raucous crowd that wasn’t so confident a few days ago, the Cavs held off Boston’s comeback in the fourth quarter and squared a tight series that is now a best-of-three with Game 5 on Wednesday at TD Center.
Cleveland is trying to become the 20th team — out of 300 — to overcome a 2-0 deficit and James, who has already orchestrated two such rallies and is seeking his eighth straight Finals, is a step closer to a third.
But to do it again the Cavs will have to win in Boston, where the Celtics are 9-0 this postseason.
“It’s a hostile environment,” James said. “We understand that, we know that there’s no love in there. If you ain’t got on green, if you don’t play for that team, if you don’t bleed green, they got no love for you. So we’ve got to come out with a bunker mentality and understand it’s just us. It’s going to be a great atmosphere.
Kyle Korver added 14 points and the 37-year-old added several hustle plays, outrunning three Celtics and diving for a loose ball. Findlay Prep product Tristan Thompson had 13 points and 12 rebounds for Cleveland. Kevin Love had just nine points on 3-of-12 shooting and was in foul trouble, but he made a big 3-pointer and follow shot in the fourth quarter.
Jaylen Brown scored 25 and Boston had all five scorers in double figures, but the Celtics fell behind by 19 in the first half and didn’t have enough to catch Cleveland.
And, of course, they didn’t have James, who moved past Abdul-jabbar (2,356) for the most field goals in playoff history. James also recorded his 25th career postseason game with at least 40 points — his sixth in this postseason.