Cleveland Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue has praised the influence of his bench after his side secured a comprehensive 115-84 victory over the Toronto Raptors in the first game of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Cavs have been in unbeatable form since the start of the play-offs, as they disposed of both the Detroit Pistons and the Atlanta Hawks without losing a game on their way to the Conference Finals.
Lue’s men showed no signs of slowing up against the Raptors, with superstar duo Kyrie Irving and LeBron James scoring a combined total of 41 points, as they secured a resounding success at the Quicken Loans Arena on Tuesday.
The match was not always going in the Cavs’ favour however, as they were 7-0 down early on in the contest and only held a 33-28 lead at the start of the second quarter.
James was brought on to the court during that second quarter, along with Matthew Dellavedova, Channing Frye, Iman Shumpert and Richard Jefferson, and they reached the half-way mark in the contest with a comfortable 50-32 lead.
Lue was full of praise for his bench at the end of the match, believing they gave the team a vital lift when things appeared to be going against the Ohio outfit.
He said: “We had a rough start to the game and our bench came in and did a phenomenal job.”
The second match of the best-of-seven series will take place at the same venue on Thursday night before the two teams meet in back-to back games at the Raptors Air Canada Centre.
Cleveland are available at 1.005 to go on and claim their second straight Eastern Conference title, while Toronto are priced at 15.00 to secure their maiden Conference success.
Leave a comment
Link Dafabet