Cavs charge out to largest halftime lead in NBA playoff history

By Chris Zakelj
Published

After the Cleveland Cavaliers dominated Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, it was reasonable to expect the Boston Celtics to draw inspiration from the TD Garden crowd and offer some measure of resistance in Game 2 before the series shifts to Cleveland.

Resistance? This was anything but.

The Cavs wasted no time in continuing their domination on both sides of the floor, removing any lingering sense of doubt, and posting 32- and 40-point quarters. After 24 minutes, the scoreboard read 72-31.

A 41-point difference.

The largest halftime difference in the history of the NBA Playoffs.

https://twitter.com/CavsFredMcLeod/status/865743153479000064

And it was JR Smith who put the Cavs over the edge in the waning seconds.

https://twitter.com/cavs/status/865743593968869378

It probably didn't hurt that "Swish" spent time before the game practicing some even tougher shots.

https://twitter.com/cavs/status/865715077302931458

The offensive explosion even drew a reaction from a Cavalier great who's plenty familiar with battling Boston in the postseason.

https://twitter.com/Mark25Price/status/865742352442380288