Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The Cleveland Cavaliers throttled Miami 124-87 on Saturday, handing the Heat the worst playoff defeat in franchise history to take a 3-0 stranglehold on their NBA Eastern Conference first-round series. The top-seeded Cavs shook off the absence of All-Star guard Darius Garland to reach the brink of a playoff sweep, the Heat unable to capitalize as the series shifted to Miami after they dropped the first two games in Cleveland.
Jarrett Allen scored 22 points and D’Andre Hunter added 21 off the bench as six Cavs players scored in double figures. The Heat, well aware that no NBA team has rallied from 3-0 down to win a playoff series, got off to a fast start and led by nine midway through the first quarter. But the Cavs weathered the storm and were up by 13 by the end of the first quarter, their lead never dipping below double digits the rest of the way.
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“We just came out with energy,” said newly named Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley, who chipped in 19 points. “We took the first punch and from there we just took the game over and played harder than them.” Bam Adebayo scored 22 points to lead the Heat and Davion Mitchell added 16. But the 37-point margin of defeat was the Heat’s worst ever in the post-season, surpassing a 36-point loss to the San Antonio Spurs in game three of the 2013 NBA Finals — when the Heat went on to win the title.
The Cavs will have their first chance to close out the series on Monday. In other games, Western Conference top seeds Oklahoma City try to close out a sweep of the Grizzlies in Memphis. The Thunder rallied from a 29-point first-half deficit to beat the Grizzlies in Memphis on Thursday and take a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
The Grizzlies will try to stave off elimination without star Ja Morant, who was ruled out with a hip contusion suffered when he was struck by Oklahoma City’s Luguentz Dort as he soared for a basket in the second quarter of game two. In Los Angeles, the Clippers host Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets, aiming to replicate the game-three blowout that gave the Clippers a 2-1 series lead.
The Golden State Warriors were hoping that Jimmy Butler would be available when they hosted the Houston Rockets on Saturday night in a series tied at one game apiece. Butler suffered a “deep glute muscle contusion” when he fell on his tailbone while chasing a rebound in Wednesday’s loss to the Rockets in Houston. He was listed as “questionable” on the injury report but coach Steve Kerr said he was “relatively optimistic” that Butler would be able to play.
© 2024 AFP
