Cavaliers Vs. Warriors Game 1: Score, Stats & Highlights

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Iman Shumpert #4 of the Cleveland Cavaliers warms up prior to Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

FINAL SCORE

Warriors: 108
Cavaliers: 100


Up until overtime, Game 1 was up for grabs. The score was 98-98 at the end of regulation and as soon as it spilled into overtime, Golden State took over and Cleveland scored just two points in the final five minutes to lose by eight.

Lebron James was the only one keeping the Cavaliers alive throughout the game with 44 points total, 42 in regulation and two in overtime. He had some help from Mozgov and Irving, but Irving saw limited playing time due to his knee injury and they couldn’t get the job done.

Curry had an OK game with 26 points, but with Thompson, Iguodala, Speights and Bogut by his side they dominated the King to clinch the first game of the series. After Irving came down wrong on his bad knee, Cleveland’s 0-1 start is looking even more grim.

Klay Thompson said in an interview with SportsCenter:

If Cleveland’s bench doesn’t get into a rhythm, it’s going to be hard for Lebron to beat us four times.

Click here to see the full Box Score.

Scroll down to see the main highlights of the game:


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Stephen Curry shoots against Timofey Mozgov in the first quarter during Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Kyrie Irving ReInjured His Knee and Said “This Felt Different”

Irving struggles in the last moments of the game and limped off the court with his bad knee bothering him once again. He had 23 points and it is unknown if he will play the rest of the series. SIrving played for 44 minutes of the game with his suspect knee and foot and was crying in the locker room because of how distraught he was about possibly being out for the rest of the series. Awfully emotional and he was crying and he said “This felt different.” His progress was slow according to doctors and he will have an MRI on Friday, June 5.

Lebron Scored 44 Points

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LeBron James shoots against Andre Iguodala in the fourth quarter during Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Lebron scored a career-high 44 points with 8 rebounds and 6 assists for a finals game. The scary part is the Cavaliers still lost the game.


Andre Iguodala Played Well Despite Covering Lebron

Andre Iguodala had the impossible job of covering Lebron James and although it would seen he didn’t do a good job, he was a playmaker throughout the game. At one point, Iguodala hit Golden State’s seventh 3-pointer, a two-pointer to gain a three point lead AND THEN blocked the Cavs’ next shot all within the same minute at one point. Iguodala was slam dunking and nailed an impressive three-pointer with his shoe falling off as shown in the video above.


Irving Stuffed Curry to Bring the Game to Overtime

With a few seconds left in the game, Irving came from behind an unsuspecting Curry and swiped the ball away from the basket to keep Cleveland alive and move on to overtime. Unfortunately, Golden State’s momentum picked up after regulation play and they still lost the game.


Draymond Green Had Four Fouls with Three Minutes Left in the Third Quarter

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Green reacts in overtime against the Cleveland Cavaliers during Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Draymond Green was a presence throughout the game in both good and bad ways. By the end of the third quarter he almost fouled out of the game but prior, he scored 12 points with 6 rebounds and 3 assists.



Cleveland Slowed the Game Down

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LeBron Jamesreacts in the second half against the Golden State Warriors during Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Cleveland started the game their way in the beginning with a 13 point lead at one point, but were unable to stop Golden State from quickening the pace between Thompson who scored 21 points and Curry with his 26 points.


Golden State Ran Away With the Game in Overtime

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Stephen Curry wears a towel on his head in the second half against the Cleveland Cavaliers during Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Golden State was dominating yet slightly behind for most of the game during regulation time, but once the clocked started for overtime, they completely dominated the entire 5 minutes. Golden State made 10 points while Lebron scored a measly two points for Cleveland with eight seconds left in Game 1.

Speights Came in Clutch For Golden State

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Marreese Speights reacts in the second half against the Cleveland Cavaliers during Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

Speights had 8 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist in his 9 minutes on the court.


J.R. Smith Was the Only Bench Scorer for Cleveland

Andre Iguodala drives against J.R. Smith in the first half during Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals.  (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Andre Iguodala drives against J.R. Smith in the first half during Game One of the 2015 NBA Finals. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

J.R. Smith had 9 points for Cleveland and Igoudala alone for Golden State had 15 points from the bench with 3 rebounds and 2 assists. Golden State’s bench totaled 34 points to help win the game.


Steph Curry Wasn’t the Star of the Game

26 points in a game isn’t bad for anyone, but Curry wasn’t the star of this game. Klay Thompson trailed with 21 points after overcoming his concussion in the playoffs and the bench had 34 combined points. Lebron was the standout with 44 points, but Curry’s 3-point finesse was undeniable, especially from the left corner.


Preview

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Steve Kerr coaches star Steph Curry against the Memphis Grizzlies. (Getty)

The Golden State Warriors were predicted to be here along with the Cleveland Cavaliers, but the ways in which each team reached this point could not have been foreseen. This week, the Cavaliers will be looking for their first NBA title in history and the Warriors will attempt to win their first NBA championship since 1975.

The Warriors have the highest number of regular season wins at 67-15 and went 12-3 over the first three rounds of the playoffs to get her. The Warriors also possess MVP Stephen Curry who has continued to get better as the season has progressed with a current average of 29.2 points per game in the playoffs. He also set a playoff record by burying 73 three-pointers, shattering Reggie Miller’s 58.

Injury has been a huge bistable for both teams with a concussion suffered by Klay Thompson and an almost devastating fall for Steph Curry that lucky for the Warriors, did not stop him from missing any playing time.

The Cavaliers’ injury situation this season was a lot worse with the losses of Kevin Love with a severe shoulder injury and Kyrie Irving with a knee injury. However, LeBron James and the rest of the team have managed to go 12-2 in the postseason to dominate the playoff series. Players like Tristan Thompson, J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert have been key in supporting King James.