Cleveland Cavaliers take NBA Finals series to game seven after downing Golden State Warriors
Cleveland took another step in their historic comeback attempt with a 115-101 win over the Warriors to force a once-unthinkable final game after drawing the series level at 3-3
The Cleveland Cavaliers took another step in their historic comeback attempt with a 115-101 win over the Golden State Warriors to force a once-unthinkable decisive seventh game to the NBA Finals.
The LeBron James-led Cavaliers, one victory away from becoming the first team to win an NBA championship after falling 3-1 behind, will now head to Oakland for Sunday’s deciding game riding a wave of momentum.
Cleveland used an explosive first half in which they led by as many as 22 points to set the tone and never allowed the usually sharp-shooting Warriors to settle into a rhythm or get any closer than seven points the rest of the way.
Stephen Curry’s biggest game could bring crown for Golden State or the Cavaliers’ finest hour
The Cavaliers built a 24-point lead in the third that looked like it might spell the end for the Warriors, but the reigning champions finally closed out the quarter on a 10-0 run to pull within nine points.
But the Cavaliers, who got a game-high 41 points from James, managed to hang on for the win and keep alive their hopes of a maiden NBA championship.
“It’s two of the greatest words in the world, and that’s ‘game seven,’ so I’ll play it anywhere,” James told reporters when asked about hitting the road for Sunday’s game.
Stephen Curry scored a team-high 30 points for the stunned Warriors, but the two-time reigning league Most Valuable Player fouled out of the game late in the fourth quarter and then, in a rare display of frustration, threw his mouthguard into the stands to earn the first ejection of his career.