The NBA faces the first game of the playoffs, with the Seventh-Ranked Nets in the East sitting at home against the Eighth Cavaliers, and the team that wins the game will officially take the seventh place to advance to the playoffs and will play against the Celtics in the first round. Those who lose this match will face off against the winners of the ninth and tenth places to compete for the eighth place.
In this game, the Nets entered the state early after the start, and the playoff mode was turned on early. Durant was well on offense and defense, Irving was fully recovered on the offensive end, and under their leadership, the Nets completely beat the Cavaliers in the first quarter.
Durant contributed 8 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 blocks in a single quarter, and only used 3 shots, which is extremely efficient at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends. Irving, on the other hand, was 5-of-5 and contributed 11 points and four assists in a single quarter. The big two erupted at the same time, and other teammates also stood up well to share the pressure.
Brown contributed 7 points, 2 rebounds and 1 steal in the first quarter, Drummond had 6 points and 4 rebounds, substitute Mills and Dragic both contributed from outside the 3-point line, and Clarkston was even more like a god, hitting a long-distance 2-pointer in the last attack of the first quarter, almost stepping on the 3-point line, hitting steadily, making the fans cheer.
Under the Nets' multi-point blossoming offense, the score was doubled early, the first quarter was played, and with Clarkston's long two-point shot, the Nets took a 40-20 lead in the quarter. It is clear that the Cavaliers' defense has slipped a lot without Jarrett Allen.
According to statistics, the Cavaliers' defensive efficiency in the games in which Allen played this season was 106.5, ranking fourth in the league, while the cavaliers' defensive efficiency slipped to 117.3 in the games that Allen missed, ranking 21st in the league. There is Aaron without Aaron, and the gap is huge.
However, after the start of the second quarter, the two sides entered the second lineup duel, and the veteran Love once again threatened, under his leadership, the Cavaliers played a 9-2 offensive wave, chasing the score to 29-42, pulling the suspense back a little. Nash's side also changed back to Durant after the timeout, after which the two sides began to fall into a tug-of-war, the Cavaliers improved their defense in this quarter, the Nets failed to feel as explosive as in the first quarter, and after halftime, the Cavaliers chased the score to 43-57, trailing by 14 points.
At the end of the half, Durant was 4 of 5, contributing 12 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists, Irving was 9 of 9, 2 of 2 three-pointers, bombed down 20 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists and 1 steal, and the Nets in the first half were as open as the sea for Irving.
On the Cavaliers side, only 2 players on the team also scored in double figures, Garland had 10 points and 3 assists, and substitute veteran Luck contributed 11 points and 6 rebounds. New signing LeVert, who had high hopes, was completely lost when facing his old club, the Nets, and only scored 3 points after 9-of-1 in the half, but had 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. But obviously, such an offensive performance inevitably disappointed the Cavaliers.