On Friday night, LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers didn't just defeat the Boston Celtics, they demoralized them. In just the first half alone, the Cavs set an NBA record for a halftime lead in a postseason game. Cleveland led by 41 points at the half, on the road. It was reported that the previous record was held by the Detroit Pistons back in 1987 when they were up by 40 points at the half on the former Washington Bullets. Helping the Cavs build that first half lead were LeBron James with 22 points and Kevin Love with 18 points.
Cavs lead 2-0
The final result of tonight's game was a 130-86 lopsided win by the defending champions. LeBron finished with 30 points, seven assists, four rebounds, four steals, and three blocks in the win. Kevin Love had a double-double with 21 points and 12 boards, while Kyrie Irving came back to life, scoring 23 points on 8-for-11 field goal shooting.
The Celtics' top star in this game was rookie Jaylen Brown who came off the bench to score 19 points, while also getting four rebounds. Isaiah Thomas was forced to miss the second half of tonight's game due to a hip strain and finished with just two points and six assists. Avery Bradley had 13, while Al Horford had 11 points. No Celtics player recorded more than five rebounds for the game.
As a team, the Cleveland Cavaliers shot a red hot 56.5 percent from the floor including a 48.7 percent three-point shooting rate. The Boston Celtics shot just 37.2 percent from the floor and 29.6 percent from downtown. The Cavs also took the battle of the boards 45-39 and had just 12 turnovers compared to 20 for the home team.
Tonight's win for the Cavs was also their 13th straight of the playoffs, tying an NBA record for that achievement.
When do they play next?
The Boston Celtics may be dreading the fact they have to take the court at least two more times against this juggernaut of a force known as the Cleveland Cavaliers. The two teams will meet in Cleveland at Quicken Loans Arena for Game 3.
That NBA playoffs game is scheduled for Sunday, May 21st at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time with TNT providing the live telecast. Game 4 will also be played in Cleveland and is set for Tuesday, May 23rd beginning at 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time. TNT will provide the live TV coverage for this fourth game of the series as well.
Now down 0-2, the Celtics will need to win at least one of the next two games to force another home game in Boston at the TD Garden, although so far that home court hasn't meant much in their attempts to dethrone the reigning champs.