LeBron James feasted at the rim, Kyrie Irving had his offense going in spurts and Deron Williams led another solid bench effort for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Cleveland finished the season 7-1 against the Pacers, winning the last four with a defensive stand, a rare 25-point game from three players, the largest second-half comeback in playoff history and now James' knockout punch. It was the stuff of head-shaking, fist-pumping, social media-fueled emotional release as LeBron James added another epic playoff performance to an already astounding inventory of them. We ain't getting swept.
Rockets 113, Thunder 109: Nene scored 28 points on ideal shooting from the field, and the Houston Rockets beat the Thunder 113-109 in Oklahoma City to take a 3-1 lead in their first-round series.
Over in the Eastern Conference, Isaiah Thomas is playing with a heavy heart due to the recent death of his sister but he still managed to score 33 points as the Boston Celtics beat the Chicago Bulls 104-95.
It was a still a nervy outing for James and the Cavs, who surrendered a 13-point advantage and saw the Pacers take a 102-100 lead with less than two minutes remaining.
The Cavaliers scored 70 points to just 40 for the Pacers in the second half. James grabbed the rebound, was fouled and made the first of his two free throws to seal the victory.
Nene made all 12 of his shots and had 10 rebounds on an off night for James Harden, who had 16 points on 5-for-16 shooting. But the second half was a different story. Both Love and Irving scored 13 points but neither played in the fourth quarter.
Westbrook bristled when reporters pointed this out. Russell against Houston. I don't want to hear that. "They had us going insane on the bench". "We had to make plays at the end, and we did". "That's all that matters", he said. "I don't want nobody to try and split us up".
"We got better in round one and that's a plus for us", James said.
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Westbrook, who gets more touches per game than nearly any other National Basketball Association player and often carries the Thunder on his back, finished with 35 points, 14 rebounds and 14 assists. Assistant Mike Brown took over and the Warriors overcame a 17-point first-half deficit to win 119-113 and go up 3-0 in the first-round series.
If the series goes a full seven games, the Cavs might have more than a full week between Sunday's 106-102 victory and their next game. Cavs are up, 58-52. Entering Game 4, Cleveland had beaten IN six consecutive times, scoring at least 109 points IN each of those six victories, which includes three regular-season games.
The Spurs lead 2-1.
According to ESPN's statistical research shop, the Cavs are the first team since the 1995 Rockets (in the Finals) to allow 100 points in every game of a series sweep.
The best-of-seven series resumes Wednesday.
Thomas' life changed just over a week ago when his younger sister Chyna was killed in a one-car crash in their home state of Washington.
"Hold on Steven", Westbrook said. "It's been really incredible". Against Indiana, James averaged 32.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, nine assists, three steals and two blocks, and he shot 54.3% from the field and 45% on three-pointers. He finished with 19 points and eight boards.
Rodney Hood and Joe Ingles also hit huge baskets for Utah down the stretch.
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