Cavs Clobber Heat Minus Darius Garland, Take Commanding 3-0 Series Lead

No Darius Garland, almost no issue whatsoever.

That was the story in Miami, as the Cavaliers dominated the first three quarters on their way to a 124-87 road win over the Heat in their first-round playoff series. Cleveland now leads the series, 3-0. No team in NBA history has overcome such a deficit.

The Cavs built a 62-42 lead at halftime behind strong defense and their usual dose of unmatched depth. They built the lead to 88-64 after three. They have yet to trail after the first quarter in this series.

As usual, the contributions were many. Jarrett Allen got things started by tallying 16 points in the first half on 7-of-7 shooting — most of which were pure assaults on the rim. Clearly, without Garland, the idea was to get the ball inside. It worked masterfully. De’Andre Hunter also scored 16 in the first half.

The third quarter was more of the same, as the Cavs rocked, rolled and really bent their knees and shuffled their feet defensively. Everything for the Heat was a major chore, minus the occasional late-in-the-shot-clock 3-pointer.

Basically, the game was 30 minutes or more of what Cleveland fans like to call a Cavalanche. It was the epitome of how a No. 1 Eastern seed should conduct itself on the road — suffocating the opponent, working for good shots and delivering.

Six Cavs finished in double figures in scoring. The list consists of Allen (22 points, 8-of-9 shooting), Hunter (21 points, 6-of-8 shooting), Max Strus (18 points, nine rebounds), Evan Mobley (19 points), Donovan Mitchell (13 points) and Ty Jerome (13 points, 11 assists).

By the way, Strus and Allen have quite the two-man game going, one that’s not being discussed, but has been wildly impactful. Overall, just a masterful performance from the Cavs.

Garland was a game-time decision with a sprained big toe. The injury is not considered serious, and he could make a return for Game 4, also in Miami, on Monday night.

Meanwhile, Bam Adebayo led the Heat with 22 points, but was just 9-of-22 shooting. Also, All-Star guard Tyler Herro was held to 13 points.

I’ll have much more later in Dribbles.

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• Related | Cavs-Heat Game 3 halftime Dribbles
• Box Score | Cavs 124, Heat 87