King James Leads Rout as Cleveland Cavaliers Live to Fight Another Day

The Golden State Warriors never knew what hit them.

With a chance at clinching the NBA title as well as making history with an undefeated run through the postseason, the Warriors did neither.

Not that the team had much to say about it as LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers were akin to a force of nature on Friday night at Quicken Loans Arena.

The Cavaliers took to the court as if they were shot out of a cannon. They blitzed Golden State for a record 49 points in the first quarter led by a fusillade of three-pointers, knocking down 7 of 12 from long range.

By the end of the quarter, the Cavaliers had roared to a 16-point lead and never looked back on the way to a 137-116 rout.

LeBron James aka King James was dominant. He finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists which broke Magic Johnson’s record for triple-doubles in the NBA finals. James now has nine in his illustrious career.

Point guard Kyrie Irving was the Cavaliers leading scorer with 40 points including 7 three-pointers. The Cavs finished with an astounding 24 threes after struggling from downtown over the first three games of the series.

One thing to beware of though is that if you live by the three, you die by the three and it’s hard to see how Cleveland’s shooters could but together back-to-back red-hot performances like they had on Friday.

This was a statement game but did it come too late?

Despite their dominant performance, the Cavaliers remain in a very deep hole. The Warriors still lead the series 3 games to 1 and won’t have the benefit of a roaring crowd in game five.

It’s not impossible for Cleveland to stage a miracle with King James playing his ass off but it’s going to be a tough rock to roll due to their slow start.

Game Five will be at 9 PM ET on Monday Night at Oracle Arena in Oakland where the Warriors could win the title in front of their own fans.