LeBron James lifts Cavaliers to 3-0 lead with overtime win over Hawks
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Version 0 of 1. CLEVELAND — LeBron James lifted his hand then fell to his knees after watching Atlanta Hawks point guard Shelvin Mack’s second three-point attempt carom off the rim and the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 114-111 overtime victory was secure. One man’s desire to fight through cramps, fatigue, a poor shooting performance and a litany of other undisclosed ailments that he joked could allow him to “play doctor” led to what will be remembered as the most celebrated capitulation Quicken Loans Arena has ever witnessed. Head buried near the hardwood, hands clasped together, James gave into his body after making sure that his team wouldn’t surrender a game that included a controversial ejection and a surprisingly valiant effort by a depleted Hawks squad in the absence of all-star Al Horford. James missed his first 10 shots but when his own undermanned team needed a heroic performance, James was there to knock down a decisive corner three-pointer with 36.4 seconds remaining then connect on another, heavily contested runner off the glass to give his team a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals. “I gave it everything I had,” James said after recording a triple-double with 37 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists. “I played to exhaustion. I gave my teammates and I gave myself as much as I can give and sometimes the body shuts down.” With Kevin Love no longer around this postseason and Kyrie Irving hobbled by tendinitis in his left knee, James has long since abandoned being efficient in exchange for wins at all cost. Now, James is one game from becoming the first player since members of those dominant Boston Celtics teams of the 1960s to make five consecutive NBA Finals appearances. It would be the sixth of his career and second with the Cavaliers, which would help to complete an inspiring of tale of redemption for a local hero who won two titles elsewhere but returned to bring the same feeling to his home state. Jeff Teague had the best game of his postseason career, scoring 30 points and drilling a three-pointer that put the Hawks ahead by one point in the final minute. But he missed a possible game-winning jumper as time expired in regulation and also collapsed to the floor after Mack missed two wide-open attempts to tie in the closing seconds. If there was any chance that there would be a competitive series then Sunday was the only opportunity for the Hawks, the most wounded and weary of 60-win, top-seeded teams. The Hawks ascended to the top seed in the Eastern Conference by adopting a five-as-one philosophy predicated on sharing the ball and making sacrifices for the good of the team. But that has not only tested, but broken, in a series in which the Hawks were matched up with the game’s best individual player, and suffered injuries and an ejection that left them weakened. DeMarre Carroll left Game 1 with a left knee injury. Kyle Korver is done for the postseason after sustaining a high ankle sprain in Game 2 and Horford was tossed in Game 3 after getting tangled with Cavaliers point guard Matthew Dellavedova while battling for a rebound with 34 seconds left in the first half and the Hawks leading by one. Dellavedova – who was filling in for the injured Irving for the second straight game – fell backward into Horford, landing on his ankle and knee. Horford retaliated by falling into a fit of rage that included an elbow into Dellavedova. And for good measure, Horford rolled on Dellavedova’s back. “Was it on purpose or not? We don’t know,” said Horford, who had only committed two flagrant fouls and been ejected once in eight seasons. “Maybe it wasn’t on purpose. But just his track record, I just felt like it was.” Dellavedova has found himself in the middle of several questionable incidents this postseason. He leg-whipped Chicago Bulls reserve Taj Gibson in Game 4 of that series, leading Gibson to kick down and get ejected. About minute left in the third quarter of Game 2, Dellavedova lunged for a loose ball and crashed into Korver’s left ankle, ending his postseason and putting the Hawks at a decided disadvantage on the road for Game 3. Afterward, Dellavedova (17 points) refuted the notion that he is a dirty player and James also came to his teammate’s defense, while mentioning that aggressive plays are to be expected in the postseason. Despite Horford’s absence, the Hawks were able to rally from a 10-point second-half deficit to be in position to win the game. Teague made consecutive layups to give the Hawks a 104-100 lead with 98 seconds remaining, stomping up and down the court as Cavaliers Coach David Blatt called a timeout. But the celebration proved to be a tad premature. Teague made amends with a three-pointer to give the Hawks a 111-109 lead in overtime, but James – who nearly asked out of the game before changing his mind – had the response. In the same spot where he hit the game-winner against Chicago in Game 4 of the previous series, James made Paul Millsap (22 points) bite on a pump-fake then knocked down the go-ahead three-pointer to move him one step closer toward fulfilling a promise to a long-suffering, championship-starved fan base. “It makes me think of John Wayne’s ‘True Grit,’ ” Blatt said of the Cavaliers. “The guys are gritty. They’re not going to give into anything.” More NBA coverage: Box score: Cavaliers 114, Hawks 111 (OT) LeBron is ahead of schedule with Cleveland Was Horford’s ejection the worst call ever? Could both NBA conference finals series be sweeps? NBA postseason schedule and results |