Well…if you were expecting a competitive Game 1 between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics, you were sadly disappointed.
The game was over by the end of the first quarter, where LeBron James almost outscored the entire Boston Celtics team 19-15.
It was a rough outing for Boston, where they were outscored by 22 at the half & were down by as many points as 28 in the game. Cavaliers forward Kevin Love had his best playoff performance, with 32 Points (playoff career high) & 12 Boards while shooting 6-9 from the three point line.
Most of the Celtics’ made their run late in the third quarter, as Avery Bradley & Jae Crowder tied for Boston’s team-high with 21 points each. Even with both of them having an exceptional game, it was no match for the world’s greatest player, LeBron James having a near triple-double of 38 Points 9 Rebounds & 7 Assists.
The league’s third leading scorer, Isaiah Thomas had a subpar night shooting 7-19 FG, but still found his way to end up with a double-double in garbage time with 17 Points & 10 Assists.
The Cavaliers gave a confidence crushing blow to the Boston Celtics early, who tried to cut it closer in the fourth as they lost 117-104. Despite the Celtics coming off of an emotional Game 7 victory at home, the Cavaliers showed no mercy as their 9 day rest had no effect on LeBron, or any of the Cavs for that matter. The Celtics looked completely worn out from their last game just 2 days ago & had no solution for the domination of the defending champs.
Hopefully the Celtics come out with a better sense of urgency in Game 2 on Friday at home. Coach Brad Stevens will make adjustments & try new lineups, but as long as LeBron is still playing his best basketball of his career, the Cavaliers should be on their way to a 2-0 series lead & their third straight sweep this postseason.
