The Cleveland Cavaliers have not received much attention this season. But their performance is often easily underestimated. In the regular season, the Cavaliers came to fourth place in the East with a 48-34 record. In the first round of the playoffs, they were intercepted by the Magic Youth Army, and the two sides fought seven games. But the Cavaliers were more sophisticated, winning the tie-break and encountering the Celtics in the second round who were the first in the East and even the first in the league.
In the first four games, the Cleveland Cavaliers fell behind 1-3 and were already standing on the edge of the cliff. But there's one more thing that makes them even more frustrated. In the battle of G4, Donovan Mitchell, the star of the Cavaliers, suffered a calf strain and missed the G5 match against the Celtics. But fortunately, Garland was able to get back on his feet in the team. He scored 30 points on a shot from inside and out, but the Celtics were superior and won the game.
In the battle of life and death in G5, Mitchell hung up the exemption card. Secondly, Jarrett Allen, who was injured in the Magic game, could not play, and scorer LeVert could not play. At the same time, the three main scorers were suspended, and the Cavaliers were already the weaker side, and in the eyes of the outside world, they were also unlucky.
On the Celtic side, although there are many soldiers, the battle of G2 is still lost to the Cavaliers. Fortunately, the two away games of the Cavaliers were won without danger. In the battle of G4, Tatum, the star of the Celtics, showed off a wave of muscles, scoring 33 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals, and was the hero of the victory. But Tatum's performance has not been consistent, and in the past 12 games, Tatum has averaged 23.7 points per game, including 41.8% shooting from the field and 22.7% from three-point range, which is average.
G5 started, and the Celtics, who were sitting at home, took the lead in getting into the groove and stopped the Cavaliers with 4 consecutive three-pointers. But then, veteran Morris and youngster Mobley teamed up to equalize the score. Cavaliers players such as Strus and Wade took advantage of the momentum to play a 12-5 run, and the Celtics struggled to equalize in the final minute of the first quarter.
As soon as the second quarter came up, the Green Army bench scored two three-pointers, and the Cavaliers also took the lead in color, and the two sides took the lead alternately. But in the second half of the quarter, the Cavaliers fell into a scoring drought, scoring a full four and a half minutes without scoring, and the Celtics also took the opportunity to open up the gap. At halftime, the Celtics won 58-52 Cavaliers.
After halftime, the Cavaliers came up to score five points to close the gap. But Horford was not to be outdone, scoring 7 points in a row, showing the veteran style and stretching the score to double digits. The Cavaliers have been suppressed by the Celtics in this quarter, relying only on the scores of Merrill, Mobley and veteran Morris to control the difference to about 10 points, and the Cavaliers trailed by 7 points after the third quarter.
In the final quarter, the Cavaliers came up to narrow the gap to 2 rounds, but White, Horford and Tatum rained three points one after another, gradually widening the score. Although Morris and Mobley have the intention to chase points, the Green Army is full of flowers, and the Cavaliers have no choice. In the end, the Celtics defeated the Cavaliers 113-98 and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals with a total score of 4-1.
Stats: Cavaliers: Garland 11 points and 9 assists, Strus 12 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists, Mobley 33 points and 7 rebounds, Marcus Morris 25 points
Celtics: Tatum 25 points, 10 rebounds, 9 assists and 4 steals, Jaylen Brown 11 points and 7 assists, Horford 22 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks (if there is an old man, if there is a treasure), White 18 points and 6 assists, Holiday 13 points, Pritchard 11 points.
After playing this round of the series, I can only sigh that the first strength of the league is too terrifying. You don't know who they're going to play in a given game.