Currently
54°
Clear

Advertisement





Sports

CLASSIFIEDS


Advertisement


Free Ad

Place an ad
in print and online, 24/7 for free, select the Clean Sweep option. Unable to submit Real Estate, Services, and Business Investements at this time.

Get a Subscription


Map the Valley


Subscriber/
Reader Services

Subscribe Now
Contact Customer Service



Cavs sweep is complete

ATLANTA -- LeBron James didn't come close to matching his performance in Game 3.

He did enough to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to another playoff sweep -- and get in a few jabs at the Atlanta fans. James scored 27 points and had the last word with a heckling fan at courtside as the Cavaliers finished off the Hawks 84-74 Monday night to win the second-round series in four straight.

Delonte West and Mo Williams showed Cleveland isn't just a one-man team, hitting huge shots down the stretch as the Cavaliers managed to extend their NBA-record streak of double-digit playoff wins to eight in a row.

Cleveland, which also swept Detroit in the opening round, will face either Boston or Orlando in the Eastern Conference finals.

No matter the opponent, the Cavaliers will be a lot more rested. The Celtics-Magic series is tied 2-2 and will last at least through Thursday, while the top seed heads back to Ohio to relax for a few days before opening the next round at home.

After scoring 47 points in Game 3, James struggled with his jumper in this one. Still, he came through with the Cavaliers facing their first serious challenge of the playoffs.

With the Cavaliers leading by just four, 66-62, James hit a towering 3-pointer with 6 1/2 minutes to go, lingering at the arc to pose with his right hand extended toward the arena roof.

The Hawks were still hanging around, trailing 76-72, when James drove right past Zaza Pachulia and laid it in despite getting hacked. He tacked on the free throw to complete the three-point play with 2:03 remaining.

Finally, after drawing the usual double-team, James dished off to an open Williams, who sank the clinching 3-pointer with 52 seconds left. The Hawks called timeout, their only way to extend the season, but James hovered near the middle of the court, just staring at the fan in the garish green shirt and orange pants who'd been riding him all game.

James made only 9 of 22 from the field, but showed his all-around brilliance with eight rebounds and eight assists. Plus, he had some help from his teammates this time, after carrying the Cavaliers almost single-handedly in Game 3.

West scored 21 points, while Williams made four 3-pointers to account for his 12 points. Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Anderson Varejao seemed to get his hand on every miss, picking up seven of his 11 rebounds at the offensive end to contribute heavily to Cleveland 15 second-change points.

The Cavaliers had another dominating night on the boards, finishing with a 48-33 edge after doubling up the Hawks (46-23) two nights earlier.

Josh Smith led Atlanta with 26 points, but the Hawks were doomed by a miserable shooting night -- 23 of 73 from the field to finish at 31.5 percent.

The Hawks actually led 22-15 after the opening period -- the first time they had been ahead of the Cavaliers after any quarter in any off the four games. The seven-point edge also matched Atlanta's biggest of the series.

But Atlanta squandered any momentum with a dismal offensive stretch to start the second quarter. The Hawks missed their first nine shots, hitting their first basket on Flip Murray's drive more than 5 minutes into the period.

(May 12, 2009)

POST A COMMENT

 

Hanfordsentinel.com encourages readers to engage in civil conversation with their neighbors. Comments that are submitted are not posted to the site immediately. They go into a queue to be moderated and may take several hours to be reviewed, particularly if they are posted after normal office hours.

We reserve the right to remove comments in total that violate our code of conduct. If you want to report a violation, please e-mail editor@HanfordSentinel.com

For more information please read our Terms of use, and Rules of the Road.

 


Please log in to post comments
*Member ID:
*Password:
  Forgot Your Password?
 
If you don't have an account you can create one for free by clicking the link below.
CREATE ACCOUNT
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the views of the Hanford Sentinel




Advertisement


HOT TOPICS

> More Hot Topics


MORE LOCAL NEWS

Lemoore:

    Selma:

    Kingsburg:



      PHOTO GALLERIES

      "More Photos

      Sentinel Photos (195) Albums

      Lemoore Golfing Lessons
      Lemoore Golfing Lessons
      Monday, March, 15 2010
      (5) Photos
      Hanford Youth Baseball Opening Day
      Hanford Youth Baseball Opening Day
      Monday, March, 15 2010
      (8) Photos
      Arbor Day
      Arbor Day
      Monday, March, 15 2010
      (6) Photos

      Reader Submitted (7) Albums

      Vintage Hanford
      Vintage Hanford
      Monday, December, 15 2008
      (1) Photos
      Vacation Photos
      Vacation Photos
      Thursday, November, 20 2008
      (43) Photos
      Events
      Events
      Thursday, November, 20 2008
      (38) Photos

      More



      EMAIL UPDATES

      Sign up today to get all your local headlines delivered to your home or work e-mail address, so you don't miss the latest in breaking and local news.
      E-Mail:
      Daily News Updates
      Breaking News Alerts