The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
NBA ON SUNDAY CAVS WIN AGAIN IN TITLE SERIES REMATCH
Irving’s jumper with 3.4 seconds remaining wins it.
With another clutch shot, Kyrie Irving took the Warriors on a trip down memory lane.
Irving dropped a short, turnaround jumper over Klay Thompson with 3.4 seconds left as the Cleveland Cavaliers rallied just the way they did in June’s NBA Finals to defeat visiting Golden State 109-108 on Sunday in a marquee Christmas matchup that more than lived up to the hype.
Down by 14 early in the fourth quarter, the Cavs chipped away and then put the ball in the hands of Irving, whose step-back 3-pointer over Stephen Curry on June 19 helped seal Game 7 and gave Cleveland its first major pro sports championship since 1964.
This time, Irving went deep in the lane before spinning and making his shot over Thompson, one of the league’s best defenders.
“The kid is special,” LeBron James said of his teammate. “It was never in doubt.”
Golden State had one last chance but Kevin Durant, who led all scorers with 36 points, lost his balance coming off a screen and couldn’t get off a shot as time expired. Durant felt he was fouled by Richard Jefferson.
“I was trying to make a move,” he said. “I didn’t fall on my own.”
James scored 31 points with a season-high 13 rebounds, Irving added 25 points and Kevin Love scored 20 for the Cavs, who were down 3-1 in the Finals before storming back to stun a Warriors team that won 73 games during the regular season, but came up one victory short of winning their second straight title.
Thompson scored 24, Draymond Green 16 and Curry 15 — on 4 of 11 shooting — for the Warriors, who had their winning streak stopped at seven and fell to 9-1 against Eastern Conference teams.
“‘It lived up to what everyone wanted it to,” James said.
The teams will meet again Jan. 16 in California and then not again unless they make it back to the Finals — a “threequel” that would be the first in league history.
■ Celtics 119, Knicks 114: Isaiah Thomas scored 27 points, Marcus Smart made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 47 seconds left after Boston blew a late lead, and the Celtics beat host New York.
The Knicks wiped out a late nine-point deficit with an 11-2 run in a little more than a minute, but Smart answered with his shot and Avery Bradley and Al Horford made big defensive plays afterward.
Jae Crowder and Kelly Olynyk each had 16 points for the Celtics, who won for the fifth time in six games. Boston beat New York for the fourth straight time.
Carmelo Anthony had 29 points and Derrick Rose scored 25 for the Knicks, who are 22-29 in their NBA-record 51 Christmas appearances.
■ Spurs 119, Bulls 100: LaMarcus Aldridge had a season-high 33 points to lead
San Antonio past visiting Chicago.
Kawhi Leonard added 25 points, 10 rebounds and four assists, and Tony Parker had 13 points and eight assists for the Spurs.
Chicago rallied from a 20-point deficit to lead by three points midway through the third quarter but could not sustain the push, taking its third straight loss.
Dwyane Wade led the Bulls with 24 points, including 10 in the final quarter. Jimmy Butler added 19 points.
■ Thunder 112, Timberwolves 110: Russell Westbrook had 31 points, 15 assists and seven rebounds to lead host Oklahoma City to its third straight win.
Westbrook had 10 assists in the second half, although he fell short of becoming the first Thunder player to score at least 40 points in four straight games.
Steven Adams added 22 points, and Enes Kanter scored 20 for the Thunder.
Karl-Anthony Towns led Minnesota with 26 points and eight rebounds, and Andrew Wiggins scored 23.