Cavs’ lack of pace, energy catches up in Game 3 loss to Raptors

It was close early, but you could almost see it right away — this would not be the Cavaliers’ night.

Lots of first-quarter turnovers, not enough energy for a road playoff game, not enough production from their stars. The Raptors deserve credit for that. This is how they play.

So, yes, the Raptors stepped up and took Game 3 from the Cavs by a 126-104 count Thursday in Toronto.

Not ideal for the Cavs, who kept it close much of the way and could’ve taken a 3-0 series lead. In the NBA, 3-0 is insurmountable.

But plenty of teams have come back from 0-2 deficits. And the Raptors took the first step.

The game was tied at halftime. The Cavs trailed by just two at the end of the third. It was easy to think, “They’re not playing great, but they’re still in it.”

Toronto put that to an end in the final eight or so minutes. Eventually, not playing great catches up with you, and that’s what happened here.

The Raptors put together a flurry of buckets and stops in a matter of moments. The Cavs just looked helpless, and at the worst possible time.

On top of that, they did not get great nights from their usual suspects. Donovan Mitchell struggled. James Harden struggled. Evan Mobley was just OK.

Nobody was terrible. But nobody was great. You generally need at least one great somebody on the road, sometimes two.

Let’s be honest, on this night, the Cavs had zero.

On the other side, Scottie Barnes was fantastic. Attacking. Talking. Backing it up all the way — and finishing with 33 points on 11-of-17 shooting. He looked first-team All-NBA. Cleveland can’t allow that to happen again, or the results will be the same.

RJ Barrett also scored 33. Yeah, cannot happen, either.

Meanwhile, Mitchell scored 15 (7-of-16 from the field). Harden went 5-of-13 for 18 points. Again, not terrible. Just not what you’re looking for when you’re trying to put a series away. They seemed a little… off.

Mostly, the Raptors completely dictated the pace, forcing the Cavs to play their style. They like to make games ugly. They liked to make you FEEL them on every possession.

It eventually buried the Cavs — who committed a whopping 23 turnovers.

Former Ohio State standout Jamison Battle, who only plays sometimes, absolutely buried the Cavs late in the second half, making all four of his three-pointers. The kid didn’t miss a shot, scoring 14 points in 16 minutes. 

Overall, the Raptors shot a sizzling 61 percent on threes. This is a team that finished in the 20s on three-point percentage in the regular season. Cleveland, however, went 14-of-45 on threes. Too much settling, not enough good looks.

Max Strus did all he could to save the Cavs, playing with energy and scoring 15 points. Jaylon Tyson had his best game of the series with 13 points. Mobley also scored 15. None of it was nearly enough.

Game 4 is Sunday, back in Toronto, at 1 p.m. Hopefully, the Cavs got whatever this was out of their system. They still lead the series, 2-1.

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