By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Cleveland led by 14 points after one quarter, by a record 41 at the half and by 46 after three. Even with James and the rest of the starters sitting out the fourth quarter, the 130 points was the most ever scored by the franchise in a playoff game.
Kyrie Irving had 23 points for the Cavaliers, who return home with a chance to finish off the Celtics in Cleveland. It would be the third straight sweep this postseason for the defending NBA champions, who also won the last three games of last year’s finals.
The Celtics played the second half without Isaiah Thomas due to a strained right hip. But the game was already out of reach by that time.
With both teams going to their benches early in the fourth quarter, the only suspense was whether the Celtics could avoid the worst playoff loss in franchise history. The Orlando Magic beat them by 47 points in the first round of the 1995 postseason.
Thomas finished with just a pair of free throws, missing all six shots from the field; he also had six assists. Rookie Jaylen Brown scored 19 for Boston, Avery Bradley had 13 and Al Horford had 11 points and five rebounds. Swedish Jonas Jerebko, the only European of the series, had four points.