On Thursday night, the 2017 NBA Finals officially tipped off at Oracle Arena. While expectations were for a down-to-the-wire Game 1, that was not the story. The Golden State Warriors took control, and after the first half, they never looked back. While the Cleveland Cavaliers made several attempts to chip into the lead, they could never get themselves back into this game which served as the start of Durant's second NBA Finals appearance. Here's a look at how Golden State grabbed a convincing Game 1 win.

Game 1 recap

With his mom in attendance, Kevin Durant put on a show for his return to the NBA Finals.

Back in 2012, Durant was a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder facing LeBron James and the Miami Heat in the Finals. However, it was the Heat super team capturing that title, making for James's first. In tonight's Game 1, Durant scored 38 points on 14-for-26 shooting. He also grabbed eight rebounds and dished out eight assists.

Stephen Curry was also spectacular in tonight's victory. The two-time NBA MVP had 28 points on 11-for-22 shooting which included a 6-for-11 performance from downtown. Curry also had 10 assists and six rebounds. Klay Thompson was held to just six points, while Draymond Green had nine points and 11 boards.

On the losing side, the Cleveland Cavaliers were led by 28 points from LeBron James and 24 points from Kyrie Irving.

James also had 15 rebounds and eight assists, while teammate Kevin Love pulled down an impressive 21 boards to go with 15 points. Unfortunately, the Cavs got very little help from elsewhere. Tristan Thompson, who had been impressive during the Eastern Conference Finals, disappeared for his team in tonight's Game 1 as he had zero points and four rebounds.

J.R. Smith finished with just three points.

As a team, the Cleveland Cavs shot 34.9 percent from the field and even though they dominated the rebounding battle 59-50, were unable to find a way to contend with Durant and Curry's big nights.

When do they play next?

The two teams suit up for Game 2 this coming weekend. The Golden State Warriors will host the Cleveland Cavaliers at Oracle Arena on Sunday night.

This NBA Finals game time is scheduled for 9 p.m. Eastern Time. ABC will once again carry the live telecast.

A Golden State win will put the Warriors up at 2-0, while a Cleveland victory evens things at 1-1. Luckily for LeBron James and company they'll have two games on their home court to either even things up or take a series lead. Game 3 is at Quicken Loans Arena on Wednesday, June 7th at 9 p.m. Eastern Time.
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