The Warriors lead the NBA Finals 2-0 after defeating the Cavaliers 110-77 on Sunday night.
The Warriors took a 2-0 series lead in the NBA Finals after coasting to a 110-77 victory in Game 2 on Sunday. Draymond Green was sensational, leading all scorers with 28 points, his most ever in a Finals game. Stephen Curry added 18 points and nine rebounds, while Leandro Barbosa came of the bench to score in double-figures for the second-straight game. The series will now transition to Cleveland for the next two games, beginning with Game 3 on Wednesday.
GAME LEADERS
In Game 1, it was the Warriors’ bench unit that took the Cavaliers - and perhaps the greater NBA world - by surprise on Golden State’s way to a runaway victory. On Sunday, in Game 2, the Warriors’ biggest contributions came from more expected places, but not necessarily in the ways that you would expect. It was Draymond Green, not Stephen Curry or Klay Thompson, who single-handedly matched the entire Cleveland team with five three-pointers, on the way to the highest scoring Finals game of his burgeoning career. Although the Cavs got off to a better start, limiting Golden State to just 19 points in the opening quarter, the Warriors’ superiority on this night would eventually show through. As Tyronn Lue confessed in his postgame press conference, “Over the course of the night, they [Golden State] continued to make the tougher plays.”
Both sides struggled to score in the opening frame, and while Cleveland’s difficulties in many ways could be traced to the Warriors’ staunch defense, Golden State could only blame themselves for theirs. Andrew Bogut recorded four blocks within the opening eight minutes of action, the most blocks in a single quarter of a Finals game since Ben Wallace notched five in Game 3 of the 2005 Finals. Golden State’s defensive production, however, was mitigated by their offensive carelessness, as the Warriors collected six turnovers in the first quarter, compared to just one for Cleveland. Golden State trailed by two points at the end of one, but upon the commencement of the second frame, Green began to take over.
He sank the opening basket of the quarter, his first of five three-pointers of the night, to give Golden State a momentary lead. Then, after the Cavs responded immediately with a 7-0 burst, the Warriors fought back in a big way. Klay Thompson sank his first three-pointer of the evening on the ensuing possession, sparking a 20-2 Golden State run that would last the next five minutes, which included an additional two treys from Green.
By the time that was over with, the Warriors led by 12, an advantage they’d soon advance to 15 with 2:08 remaining in the half after consecutive layups from Curry and Andre Iguodala. However, Golden State would go cold and be held scoreless for the duration of the half, as the Cavs closed the second quarter on a 7-0 run to pull within 52-44 heading into halftime.
Green totaled 12 points in that second frame, and his three-pointer just under four minutes into the second half rebuilt Golden State’s lead to double-digits. Then after the two sides traded baskets, it was Klay Thompson, yet again, providing the catalyst for a Warriors’ surge. His three-pointer ignited a 7-0 burst over a span of 68 seconds, capped by Green’s layup. That improved Golden State’s lead to 69-53 with 5:20 left in the third frame, and the Warriors would maintain a double-digit advantage for the rest of the contest. Green and Thompson would combine for a dynamic finish to the quarter as well, with Green providing the first five and Thompson adding the final six of the Warriors’ last 11 points of the frame, which concluded with Golden State leading 82-62.
If Cleveland had any hopes of making a miraculous comeback, Golden State put an end to those with a strong start to the final quarter, as the Warriors’ reserves got in on the action. After Curry sank a three-pointer just 42 seconds into the frame, Leandro Barbosa scored the next six consecutive points to reach double-digits for the second-straight game. Then, after a Timofey Mozgov dunk, Golden State added six-straight points to take a 97-64 advantage with 6:21 remaining. That would be as large as their lead would get until Ian Clark’s jumper with 24.3 seconds left put the Warriors up 110-76. Cleveland would add just a single free throw the rest of the way, as Golden State coasted to a 110-77 victory, their seventh-consecutive win against the Cavaliers dating back to the 2015 Finals.
With the victory, the Warriors take a 2-0 series lead in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1975. The series will now transition to Cleveland for the next two games, beginning with Game 3 on Wednesday night.