Lebron James added another chapter to his storied career on Sunday night. James scored a game high 35 points and played all 48 minutes, to help the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 87-79 win over the Boston Celtics at TD Garden in Boston in game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals. Cleveland wins the series 4-3, and advances to their fourth straight NBA finals appearance and the eighth in a row for James.
Boston started well and held a 26-18 lead after the opening quarter, and built a 12 point advantage when Marcus Morris hit a three pointer with 8:52 left in the half. Cleveland ended the first half on a 16-8 run however, to cut it to 43-39 at the break. Jeff Green made a three pointer with 4:56 left in the third to give the Cavaliers their first lead since the first quarter. Cleveland held a three point lead heading to the final 12 minutes. With the Cavs up 71-67 with a little less than seven minutes left, a dunk over James and a three pointer by Celtics rookie Jayson Tatum gave Boston their final lead at 72-71. Cleveland would end the game on a 16-7 run, including six points by James, building a 12 point lead in the final moments. The hosts only made 1 out of their final 12 shots in the game.
James added 15 rebounds, nine assists, and two blocks for the Eastern Conference champion Cavaliers. He shot 12-24 from the floor. Lebron is now tied for third all time in consecutive NBA finals appearances tying Frank Ramsay. Tom Heinsohn is second on list with nine, and Bill Russell has the record with 10. Green finished with 19 points and eight rebounds. The only other Cavaliers in double figures was JR Smith with 12, and Tristan Thompson with 10. The Cavs await their opponent for the finals, as the Warriors and Rockets play a game seven in Houston Monday night. Cleveland shot 45 percent from the floor.
Tatum finished with 24 points and seven rebounds for Boston, whom reached a game seven of the Eastern Finals without arguably their two best players in Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. Al Horford added 17 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Morris had 14 points and 12 rebounds. Jaylen Brown also chipped in 13 points and six rebounds. The Celtics shot just 34 percent from the floor, including a 7-39 effort (18%) from three point land.
Boston, who finished with an overall record of 66-35, is expected to be a top contender next season once again with the return of the leaders from this season in Tatum, Brown, and Horford along with the return of Irving and Hayward. The Celtics finished with a 2018 home playoff record of 10-1, but just 1-7 on the road, and 79 points was the lowest point total of their playoff run.
