TORONTO – The Toronto Raptors just had a horrible loss. There’s no other way to put it. In a game that the Raptors should have won…
TORONTO – The Toronto Raptors just had a horrible loss.
There’s no other way to put it.
In a game that the Raptors should have won – for a multitude of reasons – they lost 113-112.
In overtime.
At home.
After never trailing in regulation, including a 14-point lead in the first half and a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter.
To the Cleveland Cavaliers and an exhausted LeBron James who just finished a grueling seven-game series on Sunday.
And to a team that has a distinct mental edge over them.
Two seasons ago, Cleveland beat Toronto 4-2 in the Eastern Conference finals, winning the first two, losing the next two and winning the final two. Last season, the Cavs swept the Raptors.
Cleveland has now won seven consecutive playoff games against Toronto. Doesn’t matter where the games are played.
And consider this: James missed 18 of his 30 shots. In the final 13 minutes, 40 seconds of the game, James made just 3-for-12 from the field. He didn’t score in overtime. Cleveland won an overtime game with no points from James in the final five minutes. Those are opportunities an opponent looking to stop him from getting to his eighth consecutive Finals can’t waste.
Yes, James had his 21st playoff triple-double (26 points, 13 assists, 11 rebounds), but it wasn’t one of those dominating performances. James, who battled leg cramps against the Pacers on Sunday, didn’t do any on-court work Monday or Tuesday morning.
When James and Kevin Love combine to shoot 15 for 43 from the field, the other team needs to win that game in the playoffs.
“Considering the circumstances, we definitely stole one,” Cavs coach Ty Lue said.
The Raptors should’ve won Game 1. They needed to win it. Beating James four times in an Eastern Conference series has been the biggest obstacle for 14 other teams in the East for the past eight seasons. Now, they must win four of six games against Cleveland, which snagged home-court advantage immediately.
A 1-0 series lead was so important for the Raptors. For themselves and to put doubt in Cleveland’s mind that this season is different.
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Asked if the Cavs are in the collective heads of the Raptors, James didn’t answer it directly. “At the end of the day, the game is won between the four lines,” he said. “You prepare as much as you want to but you’ve got to go out and play between the four lines and 94 feet. If we go out and play our game, then we give ourselves a good chance to win.”
The Raptors didn’t concede the series after one game either.
“We have confidence. We have confidence going to Game 2 and winning it,” Toronto center Jonas Valanciunas said. “It’s a tough game. We lost by one. It’s not like they were way, way better. We’re still here. We’ve just got to clean up some mistakes and make some shots and we’re good.”
It’s a long series for sure, or at least has the potential to be that. Toronto still has time to come back and advance to the conference finals. The job got tougher.
The Raptors made significant changes to the way it played, especially offensively, because it concluded what it was doing previously was not the answer. The Raptors evolved in effort to beat one team, the Cavs.
After the series opener, Toronto already is facing a must-win in Game 2.
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