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Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals was a much tighter affair than the previous three, with the Raptors ultimately prevailing over the Cavs by six.
The Raptors are not meant to be in this position – nowhere in the script was it written Toronto and Cleveland would be tied up 2-2 and heading back to Cleveland for Game 5 – but, my word, that is exactly what has happened.
Again led by stellar play from Kyle Lowry (35 points on 14 from 20 shooting) and fellow backcourt star Demar Derozan (32 on 14 from 23 shooting), the Raptors overcame a sluggish fourth quarter to take Game 4 and square the series.
This game was looking like the three previous match-ups, with Toronto jumping out to an 18-point lead at one point, only for Cleveland to open the fourth quarter with 11 straight field goals to take the lead.
LeBron James (29 points on 11 from 16 shooting) again struggled to find consistent help from the likes of JR Smith, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. The lesser players tried to stand up when it mattered, but it was to no avail. Both Richard Jefferson and Channing Frye put in small cameo performances to get the Cavaliers the lead, but Toronto hit back to ice the game in the dying seconds.
What now? Well, the game goes back to Cleveland, where the Cavaliers are yet to lose this post-season, and also where the Raptors are yet to win a game all year long. In the previous meetings between these two teams, each game has been decided by the home crowd – will that change in Game 5?
Cleveland need to stop Bismack Biyombo from getting as many rebounds as he has in the previous two meetings (in Game 3 he had 26 rebounds and finished up today with 14), they will also want to find their offensive groove again, which has been stagnant.
The team looked really good when running with their small-ball line-up, the squad that gave them the lead in Game 4, so they would be wise to run through them more often.
Kevin Love was injured after colliding with a referee but said he should be fine for Game 5. Jonas Valanciunas was able to play today after missing the first three games with an injury, however with the play of Biyombo he was kept on the bench, which could be a good thing if this series goes the full distance.
Points
Toronto Raptors: Kyle Lowry 35
Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron James 29
Assists
Toronto Raptors: Kyle Lowry 5
Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron James 6
Rebounds
Toronto Raptors: Bismack Biyombo 14
Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron James 9
Final score
Toronto Raptors 105-99 Cleveland Cavaliers
Series
Both teams are tied 2-2
Game 5 is Thursday, 10:30am (AEST) in Cleveland.
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