WHAT HAPPENED?
LeBron James had the monster game we all suspected he'd have and the Cavs won Game 6, 109-99, in Cleveland behind James' 46 points. Game 7 will be played Sunday in Boston.
SO IT WAS LIKE THE OTHER CLEVELAND GAMES?
No. The Celtics actually started strong, led after one thanks to Jaylen Brown's 15 points and were up by seven in the second quarter. Then LeBron and the Cavs' bench went to work and smoked the C's the rest of the way. Brown finished with 27 points and Terry Rozier led the C's with 28. Jayson Tatum came back to earth after his mammoth Game 5 (though he did finish with 15 points) and Al Horford (six points, nine rebounds) was devastatingly unremarkable.
INJURY THAT WAS REAL
Kevin Love and Jayson Tatum collided roughly seven minutes into the game. Love left the game with what appeared to be a head injury and did not return.
INJURY THAT PROBABLY WASN'T REAL
Larry Nance Jr. fell and hit LeBron on the way down in the fourth quarter. LeBron backed away from the play and fell to the floor holding his right knee. He got up very slowly and stayed in the game. Within a minute he was driving hard in the paint.
WHICH NON-JEFF GREEN PLAYER WAS JEFF GREEN?
Boston Celtics
Michael Jordan
Freaking Jeff Green came in after the Love injury and was actually really good both offensively and defensively. It was maddening to watch as a Celtics fan, which was extra maddening since the thing with Jeff Green is that he's only supposed to be maddening to watch if he's playing on your team.
WORST MOMENT OF MY LIFE OF THE GAME
With Celtics up, 33-31, in the second quarter, Kyle Korver won a jump ball against Aron Baynes. LeBron hit a 3 to give the Cavs the lead, then Marcus Morris was called for an offensive foul. This was part of what would be a 20-4 run for the Cavs that also featured Green blocking a Jaylen layup. Whole thing was just awful.
BEST MOMENT OF MY LIFE OF THE GAME
When I remembered the Celtics' record at home this postseason, I guess.
HOW MUCH DID THE CAVALIERS MISS KYRIE?
George Hill had 20 points. The bench scored 36 points. This might have been the type of game (minus the Love injury) the Cavs were envisioning when they blew up their roster at the trade deadline: LeBron has a bonkers night and the supporting cast actually acts as a supporting cast.
HOW MUCH DID THE CELTICS MISS KYRIE?
This is the sad part: They didn't miss Kyrie that badly. Rozier was awesome. They missed Horford.
DEPRESSING STAT OF THE GAME
Jayson Tatum and Al Horford combined for two points in the first half.
STILL CELTICS IN SEVEN?
Celtics in seven.
