CLEVELAND -- It was not always pretty, but the Cleveland Cavaliers knocked off enough rust after having an eight-day hiatus, fought through a furious rally and mounted a final comeback in a 104-93 win over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals at Quicken Loans Arena Monday night.
Here is a look at the top three reasons the Cavaliers earned the victory over the Hawks, their fifth straight over Atlanta in the postseason over the last two years.
ONE FINAL RUN
After giving up an 18-point lead and falling behind the Hawks, 88-87, the Cavaliers responded by scoring 17 of the game’s final 22 points to close out the win.
Despite missing three baskets over the final four minutes of play, the Cavaliers mounted a 17-5 rally to seal the win. During the run, the Cavaliers used their aggressiveness to make four trips to the free-throw line, where they converted eight of their 10 attempts from the charity stripe.
“We have an even-keel mentality, starting with our head coach,” Cavaliers small forward LeBron James said. “He’s the same way, no matter the point in the game. When we’re messing up, he gets on us. He’s always saying, ‘Okay, let’s move onto the next possession. Let’s figure out a way of how we can be better the next possession.’ No matter the point or the score of the game, he’s always the same way. There’s a calm feeling when you come to the sideline, no matter if you give up a lead or not.”
J.R. SMITH HITS LATE THREE
The Hawks took an 88-87 lead over the Cavaliers after center Al Horford hit a driving hook shot in the lane with 4:28 to play in the fourth quarter. Then, on the ensuing possession, James had to adjust the play on the fly and called for shooting guard J.R. Smith to move to the other side of the floor.
The call turned out to be the right one, as Smith ran off a screen, caught a pass from James and buried a 24-foot three-pointer from the right wing, which put the Cavaliers back in the lead, and they never again trailed in the game.
“We had a set play, and Swish was out of position to start the play, so I just tried to put him position where I felt we could execute it best, and it resulted in us getting a three, going up 90-88 at that point,” James said.
HUSTLE PLAYS LEAD TO LATE BASKET
The Cavaliers got two offensive rebounds on a late possession, and those hustle plays from center Tristan Thompson and Smith led to a three-point play from James.
After James stole a pass from Hawks point guard Dennis Schroeder and started a fast break for the Cavaliers. Following Smith’s missed 11-foot pull-up jump shot, Thompson hustled after and corralled the offensive rebound, his seventh of the game.
Then, after James missed a jumper from 16 feet, Smith sprinted to the left corner of the floor and hauled in the second offensive rebound of the possession. On a reversal of the ball, James hit a cutting layup and was fouled in the process of shooting. James hit the ensuing free throw to complete the three-point play.
“We needed everything,” James said. “We needed everything tonight. Obviously, those rebounds were key. After I missed a pull-up, I think Swish ran one down. Kev ran one down. Obviously, Double T. was on the glass all night. We needed all the second-chance baskets that we had. All the extra possessions start with this guy to my right (Thompson).”
