TORONTO — The Cavaliers, in a pretty literal sense, had the series in their hands before it fell through their grasp and led to the Toronto Raptors forcing a win-or-go-home Game 7.
The Cavs lost 112-109 in overtime in Game 6, setting up Game 7 to determine the series May 3 at Rocket Arena. Tip-off has been set for 7:30 p.m.
The Cavs were agonizingly close to wrapping up the series May 1 in Toronto before three key plays in overtime stole Game 6 from their grasp.
Raptors force Game 7 vs Cavs
The initial domino fell with 2:18 left in overtime. Initially, Raptors guard Jamal Shead was called for a foul as Cavs forward Dean Wade set a screen at the top of the key. With the score tied, it would have been a key foul call anyway, but it also would have forced Shead’s exit from the game, as it would have been his sixth personal foul of the night.
The Raptors challenged the play and, after a review, the call was overturned into an offensive foul on Wade, not only giving Toronto the ball, but allowing Shead to remain on the floor.
“I think you could probably stop and replay every single play in the NBA and, depending on what’s going on, you could probably overturn it,” Wade said after the game. “So, it is what it is. I’ve just got to do better. I’ve got to, I guess, move less than I was standing still. … I was a little surprised they overturned it just because of the playoffs, the atmosphere.
“It is what it is but, yeah, it was a big one.”
Evan Mobley turnover in Game 6 looms large
The final two dominoes fell in the final 10 seconds of overtime. And for the Cavs, they were crushing.
Cleveland held a 110-109 lead with 18 seconds to go and had possession of the ball, meaning once they advanced it across half court, they’d be fouled and shoot two free throws with a chance to extend the lead.
The inbounds pass went to Dennis Schroder, the hero of Game 5, who had trouble finding space and eventually threw it to Evan Mobley along the sideline. Mobley gathered it, but instead of being fouled, when Collin Murray-Boyles swiped at the ball he connected, and it went off Mobley.
The disaster of a play suddenly gave the Raptors the ball, only down one, with 10 seconds to go. Mobley said he didn’t know for sure, but he didn’t think it went off him. The refs didn’t see it the same way, as it looked as though Murray-Boyles hit the ball perfectly to bounce off Mobley and out of bounds.
“Yeah, hit the ball out,” Mobley said. “I felt like it was our ball. They called it different. That was that.”
The Cavs did have a timeout remaining but opted against using it in the moment.
“I thought with Dennis’ speed, we run that ball up all the time,” coach Kenny Atkinson said after the game. “Get it over half court, you’re going to foul. He made an advance pass. Kid made a heck of a play on the ball.”
RJ Barrett’s incredible shot sinks Cavaliers
The final domino was the backbreaker, and it’s a play that will be replayed in Toronto for years and years.
With the clock ticking down and the Raptors down by one, RJ Barrett fired a desperation 3-pointer with Toronto’s entire season on the line. The ball first hit the back part of the rim, bounced high into the air — nearly higher than the shot clock above the backboard — and came down perfectly into the rim.
It was reminiscent of Tyrese Haliburton’s shot against the New York Knicks in last year’s playoffs. Donovan Mitchell first thought of Kawhi Leonard’s game-winner for the Raptors a few years ago that rattled around the rim and then dropped.
Either way, the Cavs were on the wrong end of a shot that seemed to float in the air forever, with the fates of two teams hanging potentially hanging in the balance.
Mobley went on to attempt a deep 3 as time expired, but it fell short, as the Raptors denied Mitchell from getting the pass from James Harden, who inbounded the ball.
“Yeah, we’re looking for Donovan coming off a curl screen,” Atkinson said. “We’ve run it before and it was really two or three options, and then Evan is on the pop … not a great look, decent look from Evan.”
And with it all going against Cleveland— the overturned foul call, the Mobley turnover and the Barrett bang-off-the-rim-and-in 3 — the Cavs’ playoffs lives will be put on the line in Game 7.
Mitchell put it best when giving a one-word answer to his reaction to Barrett’s shot going in to force Game 7 after the Cavs were so close over and over to ending the series: “Damn.”
Ryan Lewis covers the Cavaliers for the Akron Beacon Journal. He can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: The series of plays that led to the Cavs’ downfall in Game 6 vs Raptors
Reporting by Ryan Lewis, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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