Wrap-Up – If you’re an NBA fan – and specifically a Cavaliers fan – it just doesn’t get any better than Thursday night’s thriller against the World Champs. And if Thursday’s heavyweight matchup didn’t have a little of everything, it’d be hard to imagine what it was lacking.
What the game had a LOT of was Kyrie Irving, who had 30 points after three quarters – and was just getting warmed up.
The Cavaliers burgeoning superstar scored Cleveland’s final nine points in regulation, including the game-tying bomb at the buzzer – leading the Cavs back from a seven-point deficit with just over a minute to play and into the overtime period, where he scored 11 of his squad’s 18 points and led them to Thursday’s 128-125 white-knuckle win in San Antonio.
When the smoke cleared, Kyrie had surpassed his teammate, LeBron James, and into the Wine and Gold record books, finishing with a franchise-best 57 points – one point better than the four-time MVP’s 56-point outburst against Toronto late in his sophomore season. Irving went 20-for-32 from the floor, including a perfect 7-of-7 from beyond the arc and 10-of-10 from the stripe. Including his “double-nickel” in a dramatic home win over the Blazers, Irving also joins James as the only Cavaliers in team history to top the 50-point plateau twice in a single season.
The Cavs needed every one of Kyrie’s 57 points, especially in the closing moments, when the Cavs took advantage of Kawhi Leonard’s two missed free throws to give them a chance with 3.1 to play.
Just seconds earlier, Irving canned a tough baseline trey to get Cleveland back to within three after Tony Parker’s bomb put San Antonio up six, 110-104, with 33.9 to play. Parker tried to ice the game with 6.9 to play, but his jumper drew back iron. Leonard grabbed the rebound and was fouled immediately. But he came up empty from the stripe and, after a Cavaliers’ timeout, Irving took the pass from LeBron, shook loose for a split second and drilled the game-tying three-pointer.
In overtime, the Wine and Gold’s All-Star duo dominated – combining to score all of Cleveland’s points in the extra session.
Like Kyrie, LeBron seemed to get better as the game went along. Leonard and the Spurs – the Western Conference squad that’s flummoxed James more than any other – held the four-time MVP in check through the first three quarters, holding him to 15 points on 5-for-13 shooting. But LeBron went 3-of-5 from the floor in the fourth and drilled both three-point attempts in OT, finishing with 31 points to go with five boards, seven assists, two steals and a block.
Timofey Mozgov was the only other Cavs starter in double-figures with 10 points. Tristan Thompson came off the bench to finish with 12 points and a team-high nine boards.
The Cavs allowed San Antonio – which came in riding a six-game win streak – to shoot 56 percent from the floor and the 125 points was their season-high. But Cleveland went 14-for-26 from long-distance – including all four triples in overtime – and the Spurs simply couldn’t withstand Kyrie’s late barrage.
The Cavs had lost 14 straight games in the Lone Star State entering this week. In three days, they topped the two teams that had knocked LeBron out of the Finals and beat two Texas teams in the same season for the first time since 2007-08.
Irving records a franchise record 57 points.
View some of the best snapshots.
Kyrie ties the game at the buzzer.
Go inside the locker room.
Watch final game highlights from Thursday's thriller.
Turning Point – In a rollercoaster affair that featured 11 ties and 13 lead-changes, it’s hard to pinpoint an exact turning point, but the best option might be at the 3:05 mark – when Danny Green hit a three-pointer (followed by a free throw from a technical foul against LeBron) to put the Spurs up 10 – 105-95.
On the next possession, Tristan Thompson scored on an alley-oop followed by a LeBron runner to get Cleveland to within six. Kawhi Leonard split a pair of free throws to put San Antonio up seven with 1:25 to play. But Kyrie would take over from there – scoring the Cavs’ final nine points to send the affair into OT.
By the Numbers – 26, 5, 2 … games over the course of his four-year career that Kyrie Irving has topped the 30-point, 40-point and 50-point plateau, respectively.
Quotable – Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich, on Kyrie Irving’s incredible night …
”Kyrie Irving was unstoppable. I don’t know how to guard that. He did a hell of a job. We all know how talented he is, but he really went to a new level tonight. He had a hell of a night and that talent just got us.”
Up Next – Following Thursday’s thriller in San Antonio, the Cavaliers can cross the Lone Star State opponents off their road (and home) list for the regular season – finishing a combined 2-4 against the Rockets, Mavericks and Spurs. The Wine and Gold get a well-earned day off on Friday before wrapping up their road schedule in the Sunshine State – facing the Magic on Sunday evening before a trip to South Beach where they’ll try to avenge a Christmas Day loss to the Heat. When the Cavs return from Miami, they’ll play two straight at The Q for the first time since before the All-Star Break – welcoming the Nets to Cleveland on Wednesday and the Pacers on Friday.