Sunday night was a story we’ve seen countless times this year – a deep team that doesn’t need a great performance from one of its Big Three to win. Evan Mobley had a poor game for his standards, being held to nine points in 33 minutes, but it sure didn’t matter as Ty Jerome came off the bench with a huge 28 points. Teams like this go far in the playoffs.
Depth matters.
Tonight, we look to build upon what we started and head to South Beach with a commanding 2-0 lead. As any playoff game is, it won’t be easy… usually, (just ask OKC). Game One’s you typically take the best punch of an inferior opponent like Miami and I look for them to make some adjustments, particularly in the coverage of our guards, as the bulk of our points came from them. I don’t expect Miami to win many (if any at all), but with an HOF coach on their sidelines, you must come focused and prepared for anything they might throw at you.
Heading into Game One, I was particularly intrigued by the matchups of the collective frontcourts. I thought Bam Adebayo and Wiggins would give our guys fits and my assumption was right. As stated previously, Mobley was held to just nine points and Allen to 12, whilst Miami’s starting FC scored 38 points together themselves.
I would expect a change in game plan for Mobley in particular, as we can’t rely on that type of offense heroism of Jerome again, even though this is what he has been doing all year. But I don’t say that just for this game alone, getting Mobley in rhythm for future series will be crucial, especially if or when we face Boston.
While we can expect a big night from Mitchell, as he has proved he is made for these games, my sights will also be on Darius Garland. He had a great Game One and would like to see that continue as we move forward. These two are simply special when they are grooving together. They combined for 57 points and shot over 50% and if you include Jerome, that’s 85 of the 121 points scored together. Getting that kind of backcourt production will certainly take you far.
I don’t think Miami has a shot in the dance, But you can never say never.
The Cavs win again.
My Score 125 – 90.
FOR MORE ON THE CAVS BEFORE TONIGHT’S BIG GAME CLICK HERE
The post Cavs Look To Take Commanding Series Lead appeared first on Cleveland Sports Talk .