LeBron James scored 37 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and dished 13 assists as the Cleveland Cavaliers took a 3-0 series lead on the Atlanta Hawks with a 114-111 overtime win Sunday night.
LeBron’s stat line overshadowed another inefficient playoff performance. James connected on only 14 of his 37 shots, but he managed to rebound from an 0-of-10 start.
It’s hard to say the Hawks blew this game when they were counting on the likes of Mike Scott and Jeff Teague to go head-to-head with James down the stretch. But Atlanta ran a terrible possession with a chance to win on the final play of regulation, and Shelvin Mack missed a WIDE OPEN three that could have tied the game at the end of OT.
Atlanta played its first game without Kyle Korver, and his replacement Kent Bazemore was a minus-12 in his time on the court. Of course, the Cavaliers were playing without Kyrie Irving for the second straight game, as well as Kevin Love.
Both teams were stuck playing mostly seven players, and the Hawks didn’t have the services of Al Horford for the second half. The lack of depth showed, as each side struggled shooting, and players slowed down more and more as the brickfest continued.
It’s for the best Cleveland won this game. Everyone is about ready for both these conference final matchups to be over. Game 4 is Tuesday.
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