Expert
Scores updated regularly. REFRESH NOW
Golden State Warriors vs Cleveland Cavaliers |
||
---|---|---|
2017 NBA Finals, Game 2, Monday, June 5 |
||
Oracle Arena, Oakland, California | ||
Golden State Warriors | Cleveland Cavaliers | |
132 | SCORE | 113 |
40 | Q1 | 34 |
27 | Q2 | 30 |
35 | Q3 | 24 |
30 | Q4 | 25 |
If the Golden State Warriors were favourites before the NBA Finals started, they are now unbackable with the Cleveland Cavaliers facing an uphill battle to get back into the series. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage of Game 2 from 10am (AEST).
The Cavaliers were absolutely woeful in Game 1. They ended up going down to the tune of 113-91, but the stat sheet told the real story of the 22-point loss.
20 turnovers, including eight for LeBron James is the stat that jumps off the page. Combine that with a mountain of second chance points for the Warriors, and it’s easy to see why the Cavaliers were never in the game.
They got no production off their bench, and it was all down to LeBron, with Kyrie Irving, Tristan Thompson and Kevin Love also struggling throughout the match.
The Warriors, meanwhile tied the record for least turnovers in an NBA Finals game with four and made Cleveland pay for it, as Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry went to work against an almost non-existent defensive effort.
Durant was able to get into the lane and throw down dunks with ease, while Curry had plenty of wide open three point shots. The margin could have been worse as well, had Klay Thompson not thrown up bricks all game long.
While Cleveland’s offence was bad, their main issues stem from defence. That’s where winning this series is going to start and it needs to in Game 2, but with awful structure and seemingly no inside presence to stop a high-flying Durant, that’s going to be easier said than done.
The scary thing is noting the Warriors still have improvement in them. Their first half was far from perfect, going into the break with only an eight point lead, while Draymond Green, ever present on defence didn’t score a point till the end of the third quarter.
Simply put, the Cavaliers need to be a cut above in this important Game 2. While it starts with James not making as many turnovers, he is going to need support doing that. Irving and Love will be feeling the pressure to make better decisions, but others including Thompson, Iman Shumpert, JR Smith and Kyle Korver must stand up or it could be another blowout.
Prediction
Still on home court, in fantastic form and against a side who looked all at sea. It should be closer – LeBron doesn’t do two straight blowouts, but my original prediction of the Cavaliers taking one of the first two is out the back window.
Durant and Curry to fire the Warriors to another win.
Warriors by 11.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of Game 2 in the NBA Finals from 10am (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.