CLEVELAND Cavaliers have moved on to the next round after ousting Miami Heat, 138-82, in Game 4 of the NBA Eastern Conference first round series on Monday night (Tuesday in the Philippines) at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
Donovan Mitchell spearheaded the offense with 22 points, including four three-point conversions, while DeAndre Hunter and Ty Jerome came off the bench to deliver 19 and 18 points, respectively, for the Cavaliers.
Evan Mobley contributed 17 points, Jarrett Allen tallied 14 points, 12 rebounds, and six steals, and Javonte Green ended with 11 points for the Cavaliers, which wrapped up their series at 4-0.
The Cavaliers set the tone early with a 43-17 first quarter advantage before widening it further come the second frame behind their torrid outside shooting for a 72-33 halftime advantage.
Cleveland continued their run in the second half behind their off the bench players as the lead grew further to 138-78 on a three-pointer by Jaylon Tyson late in the fourth quarter.
Nikola Jovic top-scored for the Heat with 24 points, Bam Adebayo had a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds, while Andrew Wiggins and Pelle Larsson tallied 12 apiece.
Meanwhile, Golden State Warriors also moved closer to the next round in the Western Conference after a 109-106 Game 4 victory over Houston Rockets to take a 3-1 first round series lead.
With the score tied at 104-all, Jimmy Butler III converted three free throws after drawing a foul from Rockets’ Dillon Brooks, but Houston managed to cut the deficit to 106-107 on an inside hit by Alperen Sengun.
After a missed basket by Sengun, Butler knocked down two free throws with four seconds left for a 109-106 Warriors lead before Rockets’ Fred VanVleet missed a three-point attempt at the buzzer.
Butler top-scored for the Warriors with 27 points, Brandin Podziemski added 26 markers, while Stephen Curry, Buddy Hield, and Quinten Post had 17, 15, and 13 points, respectively./PN
BOX SCORE:
CLEVELAND 138 — Mitchell 22, Hunter 19, Jerome 18, Mobley 17, Allen 14, Green 11, Merrill 9, Okoro 6, Tyson 6, Wade 5, Thompson 4, Porter 4, Strus 3, Okeke 0.
MIAMI 83 — Jovic 24, Adebayo 13, Wiggins 12, Larsson 12, Mitchell 8, Herro 4, Jaquez 4, Ware 2, Highsmith 2, Johnson 2, Robinson 0, Anderson 0.
Quarterscores: 43-17, 72-33, 111-63, 138-83.
