CLEVELAND — A wild sequence of events and an RJ Barrett game-winner in Game 6 forced a win-or-go-home scenario for the Cavaliers and Raptors in Game 7, played at Rocket Arena May 3.
In that decisive Game 7, and with their playoff lives on the line, Jarrett Allen and the Cavs took down the Raptors 114-102 to advance to the second round.
The Cavs will play the No. 1 seed Detroit Pistons in the second round. Game 1 is scheduled for Tuesday, May 5, in Detroit.
Here are our instant reactions to Game 7 between the fourth-seeded Cavs and fifth-seeded Raptors:
Cavs vs Raptors Game 7: Ryan Lewis’ instant reaction
Jarrett Allen opened Game 7 with a pretty awkward missed dunk. And, later, he put together what might have been the best quarter of his Cavs career, dominating Toronto with 14 points and 10 rebounds in 12 third-quarter minutes. It was a reminder that while Allen has had several moments when it was brought into question how he fit into this roster, he can also have tremendous stretches like he did in Game 7.
This one did look like the Raptors — playing the entire series without Immanuel Quickley and the last few games without Brandon Ingram — ran out of gas after halftime of Game 7, when their offense simply cratered. Give credit to Cleveland, though keeping up with the Cavs’ offensive firepower without two key players isn’t easy over seven games.
Donovan Mitchell and James Harden did enough, Max Strus and Sam Merrill supplied some energy and offense at the right moments, and the Cavs survived to face former Cleveland coach J.B. Bickerstaff and the Pistons in the second round. They have plenty of issues to work out — namely their issues on the road — but they escaped the first-round scare.
Cavs vs Raptors Game 7: Nate Ulrich’s instant reaction
Sanity prevailed when Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson went back to his most effective lineup of Round 1 by starting forward Dean Wade along with guards James Harden and Donovan Mitchell, forward Evan Mobley and center Jarrett Allen. Although the Cavs fell behind out of the gate (Game 7 jitters seemed to be present), the same five players clicked coming out of halftime as the Cavs went on a 9-0 run, seized a 58-49 lead and gained control after the score was tied 49-49 at halftime. Allen had 14 points and 10 rebounds alone in the third quarter, and Mitchell added nine points. The Cavs outscored the Raptors 38-19 in the third quarter.
Wade served as Cleveland’s fifth starter in the first four games of the series. In Games 5 and 6, Atkinson started small forward Max Strus in place of Wade. It turns out the Cavs desperately needed Strus’ energy off the bench in Game 7. He helped the Cavs regroup after they fell behind by 10 points twice in the second quarter. He hustled, drew offensive fouls and rebounded, among other contributions. He finished with Cleveland’s best plus-minus rating of plus-20.
Ryan Lewis and Nate Ulrich cover the Cavaliers for the Akron Beacon Journal.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cavaliers vs Raptors Game 7 instant reactions, analysis, highlights
Reporting by Ryan Lewis and Nate Ulrich, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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