Green escapes suspension
Toronto 105, Cleveland 99 (Series tied 2-2) 9 a.m. – Golden State at Oklahoma City (Oklahoma City leads series 2-1)
TORONTO (AP) — A series that once looked lopsided is now even. Kyle Lowry scored 35 points, including a driving layup in the final minute, and DeMar DeRozan had 32 as the Toronto Raptors evened the Eastern Conference Finals by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 105-99 in Game 4 on Monday night. DeMarre Carroll scored 11 points and Bismack Biyombo had 14 rebounds as Toronto improved to 8-2 at home this postseason and got back on level terms after big losses in Games 1 and 2. “We’ve been counted out, and we like that challenge,” DeRozan said. The next challenge for Toronto? Game 5 on Wednesday night in Cleveland, where the Raptors are 0-3 this season, losing by a combined 72 points. “We have to continue to make sure that when they punch, we punch back,” Lowry said. “And if they punch three times, we punch four times.” The Raptors are 2-6 on the road in the playoffs. After a 10-0 start to these playoffs, the Cavaliers are counting on home court advantage to help them reach their second straight Finals. “Going back home we have to play a lot better and I think we will,” LeBron James said.
NEW YORK (AP) — Draymond Green was fined $25,000 but not suspended by the NBA on Monday for kicking Oklahoma City center Steven Adams in the groin.
The league also upgraded the foul to a flagrant 2, which would have resulted in an automatic ejection had officials given it that ruling when it happened. That moved him closer to an automatic suspension for accumulation of flagrant foul points.
Cleveland lost consecutive playoff games to an Eastern Conference opponent for the first time since dropping the final three games of the conference semifinals to Boston in 2010.
“We had a few defensive breakdowns that you can’t have down the stretch of a game, especially in the playoffs,” Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said. “They executed every time we made a mistake.”
James scored 29 points and Kyrie Irving had 26 for the Cavaliers, who trailed by as many as 18 points. Channing Frye scored nine of his 12 points in the fourth quarter.
Lowry scored nine in the fourth and DeRozan had 12, connecting on five of six shots.
“It’s a cakewalk for me when (Lowry) gets going,” DeRozan said. “It opens up everything.”
The Raptors led 78-69 to begin the fourth but Frye made consecutive 3-pointers as Cleveland opened the final quarter with an 8-0 run, cutting it to 78-77. The Cavaliers made their first 11 shots of the fourth quarter.
“It wasn’t enough because we got off to a horrible first half once again in this building and you’re playing catch up the whole game,” James said.
Frye’s errant 3-point attempt at 4:12 was Cleveland’s first miss of the fourth. DeRozan made two free throws at the other end and, after another miss by Frye, Carroll made one of two to put Toronto up 99-96 with 3:23 to go.
But Green will be on the court when the Warriors try to even the Western Conference finals at 2-2 on Tuesday at Oklahoma City.
Green was called for a flagrant 1 foul after he was fouled by Adams with 5:57 remaining in the second quarter and kicked his leg up into Adams’ groin. Though the Thunder felt it was intentional, Green and Warriors coach Steve Kerr said they believed the flagrant would actually be rescinded by the league.