Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The Cleveland Cavaliers thrashed the Miami Heat to cruise into the next round of the NBA playoffs on Monday as the Golden State Warriors battled past the Houston Rockets 109-106 to move to the brink of a series victory.
After pounding Miami 124-87 in game three on Saturday, No.1 Eastern Conference seeds Cleveland once again piled on the misery for their outclassed opponents with a crushing 138-83 victory to complete a 4-0 series win. The 55-point drubbing was the largest series-clinching victory in NBA playoff history and sets up a series against either the Indiana Pacers or Milwaukee Bucks in the next round.
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Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers scoring with 22 points on a night when six Cleveland players finished in double figures. With Darius Garland (toe) missing from the Cleveland line-up, Mitchell received support from De’Andre Hunter with 19 points, Ty Jerome (18) and Evan Mobley (17). Mitchell said Cleveland had been determined to wrap up the series swiftly.
“We came out here with a goal in mind,” Mitchell told TNT television. “To keep our foot on their throat and on their neck and continue to play 48 minutes of basketball.” That ruthlessness was apparent from the tip-off, with Cleveland rapidly opening up a monster 43-17 lead after the first quarter against a shellshocked Miami.
The Cavs cranked up the pressure in the second quarter, stretching their lead to as many as 45 points before reaching half-time with a whopping 72-33 lead. The punishment continued after the break, with the Cavaliers keeping the points flowing to build on their advantage, opening up a 48-point lead at 96-48 midway through the third quarter. That lead had grown to 111-63 heading into the fourth quarter, and the carnage continued in the final frame as Cleveland romped home.
Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said the series loss underscored the gulf between the two teams. “Damn, it was humbling,” Spoelstra said. “This series was humbling. These last two games were embarrassing. But Cleveland is a very good team…we were as irrational as we usually are thinking that we have a chance to win this series, and they showed us why we weren’t ready for that.”
– Butler inspires Warriors –
In Monday’s other playoff game, Jimmy Butler made a dazzling return from injury for Golden State in a pulsating Warriors victory over Houston in San Francisco. Butler — who was injured in a controversial incident in game two last week and missed game three with a pelvic contusion — scored 27 points to help Golden State take a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
An ill-tempered contest frequently threatened to boil over, with several shoving matches erupting at different periods of a hard-fought scrap at the Chase Center. While Stephen Curry had a quiet night with 17 points, Brandin Podziemski rained in six-of-11 three-pointers to finish with 26 points. Houston had led by seven early in the second half, but saw that lead whittled away after an inspired 18-1 run by Golden State that put the home side in control.
While Houston fought back to open up a four-point lead late in the fourth, Golden State rallied to claw back the initiative with five late Butler free throws to seal victory. “Jimmy was just amazing,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said, revealing that the 35-year-old six-time NBA All-Star had fought through the pain from his pelvis injury throughout the game. “If it were the regular season, he’d probably miss another week or two but it’s the playoffs and he’s Jimmy Butler,” Kerr added.
Butler, whose arrival from Miami in February breathed new life into Golden State’s season, said his move had reignited his love for basketball. “I would die for these guys,” Butler told TNT. “I got my joy back. I always say that we got the most confident guys. Anybody can put the ball in the basket, but more than anything we’re locking in defensively and when we limit our turnovers we’re hard to beat.”
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