TORONTO: Kyrie Irving knew what time it was.
With 6:38 remaining in the fourth quarter as Serge Ibaka completed an and-one to give the Toronto Raptors a one-point lead, the Cavaliers guard knew what was required. He knew a week of rest was on the line, valuable to him, LeBron James and the rest of his teammates.
With the Cavs leading the Eastern Conference semifinal series 3-0, Irving knew a sweep would be vital to their chances to repeat as NBA champions.
“Winning time,” is what Irving called it.
Irving scored 11 consecutive points, starting a 14-2 surge by the Cavs that put away the Raptors 109-102 Sunday. The Cavs will await the winner of the Boston Celtics-Washington Wizards series, tied 2-2, in the Eastern Conference finals, which won’t open until at least May 15. It will start on May 17 if the Celtics-Wizards series goes seven games.
Irving finished with 27 points, 18 in the second half, along with nine assists. While he shot 10-of-24 from the field, 2-of-6 from 3-point range, he hit 3-of-6 shots in the fourth quarter, 1-of-2 from beyond the arc.
“We needed that spark,” James said of Irving. “We just wanted to try and get defensive stops while he was in the zone he was in, and we were able to do that.”
James, who totaled 35 points, added nine in the fourth quarter, including a 3-pointer with 2:54 to go that put the Cavs up 106-95. But he shared the spotlight with Irving as “Mr. Fourth Quarter” came through.
“I expect him to score every time he touches the ball,” J.R. Smith said of Irving. “I’ve said this time and time to our guys — he’s the best offensive player I’ve ever seen. There’s no part of his game on the offensive end that he doesn’t have. He can post up, he can finish, he can shoot free throws, shoot the 3, pull up off the dribble, catch and shoot, create for teammates, he’s got it all.”
Kevin Love appreciated how Irving turned it on at the right moment.
“That’s what he does — he gets into a good groove and it’s tough to stop,” Love said. “Then you send a couple guys at him, he’s off balance and force him into tough shots, when he’s in the zone like that he’s very tough to stop. He’s a pure scorer.”
When asked what happened in the fourth quarter, Irving said, “Just understanding the magnitude of the game, what was at stake. A lot of our offense was on Bron’s shoulders and he had been playing I think at least 16 straight minutes or 18 straight minutes. It was winning time for the both of us and we understood that.
“Getting to the basket and just catching it a little closer to the basket at the elbow, iso’ing me at the elbow as well as running a double-screen on the weak side opened up a lot of opportunities.”
Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said it was all about the elbow.
“In that fourth quarter I just went to iso at the elbow for Kyrie,” Lue said. “Getting it to him, clearing out, bringing Kyle [Korver] off the double and they’d give Kyrie a live dribble at the elbow, where he’s virtually unstoppable.”
On two of his layups, Irving drove past Cory Joseph, who started for the injured Kyle Lowry for the second consecutive game. Irving started the surge with a 3-pointer from his favorite spot on the right wing.
“It’s not prototypical for a right-hand dominant guy to be stepping back right. You don’t really see it often, especially not just a step-back, but a side-step,” Irving said of his spot. “For me, it’s just an incredible shot because I’m already lined up to the rim and my elbow’s already pointed. So when I get it to kinda that area where it’s on my hip, it’s just almost a straight shot. It’s almost undefendable for me, no matter who’s guarding me. And then it opens up opportunities for me to get to my right hand if they crowd me.
“Just playing the game the right way. But also realizing that so many more moves that I can do out of that and set up my guy in order to get to the rim or make a play for my teammate. Or shoot a step-back 3.”
With nine assists Sunday, Irving averaged 8.5 for the series. While Lue appreciates that, especially if that’s what Irving must do depending on the way the opponent is guarding him, that’s not what Lue wants foremost.
“I need him to be aggressive, be a scorer, attack,” Lue said. “If they’re going to be up and putting two on the ball, then he has to be able to make the right play and the right pass, which he’s been doing this series.”
In their three seasons together, James has come to trust Irving in big moments.
“You guys know from the time I came back three years ago that he’s one of the guys that I’ve singled out. You can see the talent. And once you put the talent and the experience and then the mind, you really start to see what he’s capable of doing,” James said. “And I sensed that. It’s just when I got here, he was 22 years old and had been a part of some losing seasons.
“Did he build some bad habits? I don’t know. I wasn’t part of the franchise at that point and time. But the habits that he’s built over the last three years have put him in a position where you can always rely on him, no matter what’s going on.”
Close ties
The game featured two matchups of players close since their childhood days.
The Cavs’ Tristan Thompson went to high school at Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nev., with the Raptors’ Cory Joseph and the two embraced after the Raptors’ season ended.
Joseph started for the injured Kyle Lowry and finished with 20 points, six rebounds and 12 assists in 40 minutes.
“Now me and Cory Joseph can text,” Thompson said. “I told him he played one helluva game tonight and definitely showed what he is capable of doing for that team moving forward. He definitely left on a good note and I’m pleased for the way he ended the season.”
James was guarded for much of the night by P.J. Tucker, a native of Raleigh, N.C., and product of the University of Texas he’s known since their AAU days.
“All the way through AAU ball, through high school, going through Texas and being part of this league, he’s always been a guy that’s never going to say, ‘Did I leave it all out there?’ ” James said of Tucker. “As a competitor, I can always respect that going against him over the years since we were kids. So, it was definitely fun to be a part of.”
Long wait
The Cavs will wait until at least May 15 to start the Eastern Conference finals, but Smith said he won’t be consumed by watching other playoff games on television.
“I watch the Golf Channel, I don’t watch [the NBA playoffs],” Smith said. “If I do watch the games I’ve got to play some music or something in the back because I don’t like everything else that goes along with the games.”
Thompson wasn’t looking forward to the serious conditioning work that will lie ahead during the Cavs’ break.
“I think it’s good for us in terms of getting the rest,” Thompson said. “Coach Lue and the whole staff know what we need to do in order to stay in shape. Our conditioning will be ramped up. It’s a good thing about getting a sweep, but that conditioning workout we’ve got, it’s a beast.
“That damn VersaClimber — I’ll be destroying it, but I hate it. It’s the worst thing in the weight room.”
Heavy load
James played 46 minutes, all 24 in the second half. Lue said he always lets James tell him when he’s tired in a potential close-out game.
“A close-out game has always been like that,” Lue said of James. “He tries to go as far as we need him. I know in that fourth quarter I tried to get him out for a couple of minutes, but he said, ‘No, I’m fine. Get me a timeout and I’ll be OK.’ ”
With four minutes to go and the Cavs leading 103-95, Raptors coach Dwane Casey called a 20-second timeout and Lue followed with a full.
“If that didn’t happen, I would have had to get him out for a minute and a half or so,” Lue said. “But once Casey called that 20 and I called a full, it gave him a five-minute break and that was good for us.”
Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Read her blog at www.ohio.com/marla. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MRidenourABJ.