A look inside the Hawks’ 109-94 loss to the Cavaliers Monday:
Five observations
1. Dynamic duo
LeBron James and Kyrie Irving combined for 69 points. That’s 63 percent of the Cavaliers’ offense. James scored his points on 13 of 16 shooting. Irving needed to shoot 14 of 28 for his points. The other three Cavaliers starters combined for 21 points.
“Two of their stars played amazingly,” Kent Bazemore said. “LeBron and Kyrie, they did whatever they wanted. It’s tough to beat them when one is having a decent night but when they both are going off it’s hard for a team to have a chance.
2. Marathon man
How important was it for the Cavaliers to lock up the No. 1 overall seed in the Eastern Conference. James played all but 1:49 of the first half. He sat the final 1:46 of the third quarter. He only came out then when the Cavaliers had a 17-point lead. He didn’t need to come back in the game after he scored 34 points.
3. Defending the 3
Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer listed several keys to the game Monday morning. One area of importance was to guard the Cavaliers at the 3-point line. The early returns were not good. The Cavaliers were 8 of 17 (.471) from long range in the first half with James, Irving and Kevin Love all making two. The Cavaliers finished 11 of 29 from 3-point range.
4. Cavaliers make runs
The Hawks scored 10 straight points to start the first quarter, forcing the Cavaliers to call a timeout 1:49 into the game. The Hawks led 20-10 before the Cavaliers answered with a 20-8 run to take a brief lead. The Hawks regained the lead after Bazemore scored eight straight points, including two 3-pointers. The Cavaliers had another answer as they ended the second quarter on a 19-7 run to take a 51-45 lead into intermission. When the Hawks pulled to within two points, 68-66, in the third quarter, the Cavaliers answered with a 20-5 run.
5. Bazemore early and often
Bazemore scored eight straight points, including two 3-pointers, to start the game. The Hawks took a 10-0 lead before James got the Cavaliers on the board with a steal and dunk. By halftime, Bazemore had 21 points, seven off his season- and career high. The 21 points were the most scored by any Hawks player in a half this season. Bazemore was 5 of 7 from 3-point range, with the makes a career-high. The rest of the Hawks were 0 of 9 from 3-point range through two quarters. Bazemore scored just two points the rest of the way.
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