The Toronto Raptors defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals, 99-84, where they now trail 2-1.
Bismack Biyombo grabbed 26 rebounds, breaking the franchise record for most rebounds in a game (post-season and regular season) . The previous record holder? Bismack Biyombo with 25 rebounds last March.
In these playoffs, DeMar DeRozan has performed well when his back is against the wall. Tonight, in a game where the Cavaliers were expected to take control of the series, DeRozan came out firing: scoring 32 points on 12-24 shooting, along with five rebounds and four assists. Watching the game you could see his decisiveness and tenacity when driving to the basket.
For the Cavaliers, it was an off-night offensively that gave them their first loss of the postseason. LeBron James was the only one of the Big 3 to score over 20 points; James finished the game with 24 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving combined for 4-28 shooting from the field. J.R. Smith and Channing Frye proved to be offensive threats, notably from deep. Those two combined for 33 points.
The officiating was questionable, but that did not hinder the Raptors momentum (maybe a bit in the third quarter). In Game 2, the Cavaliers pulled away in the second quarter to gain control of the game. Tonight, the Raptors did just that- beating Cleveland 33-23. For the rest of the game, it was all Toronto.
It took a near-perfect take for the Raptors to get their first-ever conference final victory. Let’s look at the Report Card.
Offence: A
Overall, the Raptors took high-percentage shots and moved the ball significantly more than they did in the previous two games. As stated before, DeRozan played his heart out in front of the home crowd. DeRozan managed to earn trips to charity stripe where he shot 8-9. He would end the night with 32 points.
Kyle Lowry started the game hot but quickly got into foul trouble. When he did return, he played like it was the regular season: driving hard to the basket and actually making threes. He ended the night with 20 points (7-13 shooting), six rebounds and three assists.
When Lowry came out, Cory Joseph locked in. Joseph failed to make a significant impact in the first two games of the series, but tonight he played like Popovich was watching. He ended the night scoring 14 points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing out three assists. He also has this nice buzzer beater:
Nothin' but nylon to end the 3rd. #RTZ #WeTheNorth https://t.co/yHav1z1gCn
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) May 22, 2016
Defence: A
For the most part, the Raptors kept the Cavaliers from going on offensive runs. It was hard to stop the freight train that is LeBron, but they did manage to stop Irving and Love. Toronto did a sound job of rotating, especially off of screens. They did allow the occasional open three, but fortunately, Cleveland’s shots were not falling as often as the previous two games.
Biyombo’s presence in the paint prevented some highlight worthy plays. The lion-fearing, finger-wagging big blocked four shots tonight, including this one on Kyrie:
Objects in the mirror are closer than they appear. #RTZ https://t.co/1cD5iUtvZ2
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) May 22, 2016
Rebounding: A+
The Raptors controlled the backboard tonight, destroying Cleveland in that category 54-40, thanks to an absolutely monstrous performance from Biyombo. Big Bizness managed to grab a franchise-record 26 rebounds, eight of which were off the offensive glass.
Game Ball: Bismack Biyombo
Biyombo and DeRozan both performed exceptionally well, however it was Biyombo who scored baskets in the clutch. He ended the game with 26 rebounds and seven points: a Rodman-esque statline.
Biyombo thrives in front of the home crowd and you could see that tonight. He snatched the defensive rebounds and crashed offensive glass. He set a franchise-record in rebounds in a game (26), breaking a record that he himself previously set. The Raptors needed a defensive presence in the paint after losing Jonas Valanciunas, and they got one in Biyombo.
