TORONTO — LeBron James scored 35 points, Kevin Love had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and the Cleveland Cavaliers pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat the Toronto Raptors 115-94 on Friday night and take a 3-0 lead in their second-round playoff series.
DeMar DeRozan scored 37 points and Jonas Valanciunas had 19 for the Raptors, who were without three-time All-Star Kyle Lowry. They trailed by only two after three quarters before the Cavaliers quickly blew open the game.
Game 4 is Sunday in Toronto.
The Cavaliers are the only team since the Minneapolis Lakers in 1949 and 1950 to win their first seven playoff games in consecutive seasons.
Cleveland won 10 straight to begin the playoffs last year. That streak ended when Toronto beat the Cavs in Games 3 and 4 of the Eastern Conference finals, but the Raptors couldn’t duplicate the feat this time around.
Kyrie Irving scored 16 points and Kyle Korver had 14 for the Cavaliers, who have posted three straight double-digit wins over Toronto. James had eight rebounds and seven assists.
Norman Powell scored 13 points and Serge Ibaka had 12 for the Raptors, who shot a dismal 2 for 18 from 3-point range.
Lowry sprained his left ankle in the third quarter of Game 2 and did not practice Thursday. He worked out a few hours before Friday’s game and was on the court during warmups but limped back to the locker room before the national anthems. Cory Joseph started for Toronto.
Even without Lowry, the Raptors trailed 79-77 to begin the fourth, but Cleveland pulled away as Toronto missed 10 of its first 11 field goal attempts to begin the final quarter. James hit four free throws on either side of a 3-pointer to put the Cavs up 97-80 with 6:20 left.
NOTES
SPURS: Tony Parker has undergone successful surgery to repair a ruptured left quadriceps tendon, the team said Friday.
A timeline for his return will be determined later. The 34-year-old Parker was injured Wednesday night during Game 2 of San Antonio’s playoff series against Houston.
HAWKS: Mike Budenholzer is resigning as the president of basketball operations and will remain as coach.
Atlanta also removed Wes Wilcox as general manager and will begin seeking a replacement. Wilcox will become a special advisor to ownership as part of the front office’s reorganization.
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