Cleveland’s historic shooting from deep was unquestionably the story of the night, although it took the team a bit to get going. After making just one three-pointer in the opening five minutes (and falling several points behind), the Cavs closed the period on a 19–4 run to finish the first quarter 8-of-12 from beyond the arc. Several of those looks were tough,Air Jordan 9 Low but the Cavaliers were able to shoot so well in part because the Hawks collapsed on dribble penetration to allow open shots from the perimeter. Whether due to missed assignments or intentional tactics, those decisions backfired completely and allowed the Cavs to lead 35–20 at the buzzer.
It only got worse for the Hawks. The Cavs’ continued to make two-thirds of their three-pointers, knocking down 10-of-15 in the second quarter to shatter the previous record of 12 three-pointers in one half of a playoff game, a mark set just 10 days prior by the Golden State Warriors. The record-setting three came at the 7:37 mark of the period, which gave them plenty of time to add to it. In fact, Cleveland’s 18 first-half three-pointers put them ninth on the single-game playoff list with 24 minutes still to play.The operative question at halftime wasn’t if the Cavs would top the Warriors’ playoff record of 21 three-pointers, but when they would do it. The answer came after fewer than seven minutes of game-time when Kyrie Irving made the record-tying and record-breaking shots on consecutive possessions:
The Cavs didn’t make another three-pointer in the period,Air Jordan 9 Red Black but the damage had been done. A 106–70 score after three turned the fourth quarter into full-on garbage time, with the Cavs holding most of the interest for their quest to break the NBA record of 23 three-pointers in a single game (regular or postseason).The Cavaliers have now made more three-pointers (40) than two-pointers (38) in the first two games of this series, which is probably something for the Hawks to work on before they go on vacation.The individual totals are staggering for Cleveland — streaky shooter J.R. Smith went 7-of-13 from beyond the arc for 23 points, LeBron James shot 4-of-6 on the way to his team-high 27, Kyrie Irving made 4-of-5, and Kevin Love balanced an 0-of-8 showing on twos by making 3-of-4 from beyond the arc.