Cavs protect home court
- What happened: Cleveland won Game 2 at home to take control of its first‑round series against Toronto. - The key specific: Cleveland's 'potent trio' led the win while Brandon Ingram remained largely ineffective for Toronto. - Context/reaction: The result leaves Cleveland well‑positioned to shorten the series if its balanced offense continues (sports.yahoo.com).
Cleveland beat Toronto 115-105 on Monday, April 20, to take a 2-0 lead in their Eastern Conference first-round series and keep home court. (espn.com) Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points, James Harden added 28, and Evan Mobley finished with 25 as Cleveland got 83 points from its top three scorers at Rocket Arena. (espn.com) Cleveland never trailed, led 26-19 after one quarter, and answered Toronto’s late push when Mitchell scored seven straight points in the fourth. (espn.com) Toronto got 26 points from Scottie Barnes, but Brandon Ingram again failed to tilt the series, a problem that has left the Raptors leaning too heavily on Barnes and RJ Barrett for offense. (sports.yahoo.com) The series has turned on Cleveland’s shot creation from two spots at once. Mitchell and Harden combined to score or assist on 78 of Cleveland’s 115 points in Game 2, according to ESPN Research. (espn.com) Mobley’s scoring gives Cleveland a third pressure point, which is why Toronto has not been able to load up on the backcourt the way playoff defenses usually try to do. (nba.com) The 2-0 edge matters because the series now shifts to Toronto for Game 3 on Thursday, April 23, with Cleveland averaging 120.5 points through the first two games. (nba.com) Cleveland has also extended its postseason run of success against Toronto: the Cavaliers have won 12 straight playoff games against the Raptors, a streak that dates to the 2016 Eastern Conference finals and includes sweeps in 2017 and 2018. (espn.com) Toronto was more competitive than in the 126-113 Game 1 loss on April 18, but the Raptors still have not found a clean answer for Cleveland’s three-headed offense. (espn.com, nba.com) Now the pressure moves north with the series. Cleveland is two wins from ending it, and Toronto needs a version of Ingram that has not shown up in the first two games. (nba.com, sports.yahoo.com)
