Donovan Mitchell scored 32 points, and James Harden added 22 points and 10 assists as the Cavs defeated the Raptors 126-113 in Game 1 of their best-of-7 first-round series at Rocket Arena on Saturday.
Game 2 is on Monday night in Cleveland.
The Cavs, who led by as many as 24 points, led 61-54 at halftime, but they opened it up in the third quarter. Cleveland began the third quarter on a 15-2 run over the first three minutes, and the Cavs, who outscored the Raptors 36-22 in the third, would push the lead to 22 points and go into the fourth quarter up 97-76.
Cleveland would shoot 50% from the field in that pivotal third quarter; 27 of the team’s 36 points in the quarter were by Mitchell, Strus, and Mobley.
R.J. Barrett would lead the Raptors, who had five players in double figures, with 24 points. Scottie Barnes added 21, and Jamal Shead, who started in place of injured point guard Immanuel Quickley (hamstring), had 17.
For the Cavs, who also had five players in double figures, Max Strus added a playoff career-high 24 points off the bench, and Evan Mobley had 17 points and seven rebounds.
Bottom Line:
Both teams shot the ball well(Cavs: 54%, Raptors: 52%) on Saturday, both teams shot it well from deep(Cavs 16/32, Raptors 13/27), both teams turned the ball over way too many times(Raptors: 18, Cavs: 17), but the Cavs really separated themselves in the third quarter, which was the difference in the game.
Both teams would probably say they need to play better in Game 2, but credit to the Cavs for getting the job done.
Note:
For the 11th straight time, the Cavs have defeated the Raptors in the playoffs. The last time these teams faced off in the postseason was in 2018 when the Cavs swept Toronto.
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