LeBron James recorded his 12th playoff career triple-double to help the Cleveland Cavaliers seal a 114-111 overtime win over the Atlanta Hawks in their Eastern Conference Finals on Monday morning.
James, who was visibly exhausted and limping at times, finished with 37 points, 18 rebounds and 13 assists in nearly 47 minutes on floor, as the Cavaliers moved just one game away from the Championship Finals for the first time since 2007.
Matthew Dellavedova and J.R. Smith added 17 points apiece for Cleveland.
Despite being without injured shooter Kyle Korver and losing Al Horford, who was ejected in the first half, the Hawks forced Cleveland to play their best.
Atlanta face elimination in Game 4, despite a relentless 30-point performance from Jeff Teague.
Cavaliers shooting guard Iman Shumpert missed a free-throw with 17.1 seconds remaining in regulation leaving the game tied at 104.
The Hawks called for a timeout, drawing a potential game-winning, but Teague missed a three-pointer attempt, forcing an overtime.
While Teague celebrated a potential game-winning three-pointer in the extra five minutes that put the Hawks ahead 111-109, four-time MVP James calmly replied with yet another a three-pointer for a 112-111 lead with 36.4 seconds.
But, one of the highlights of the game was the ejection of Hawks forward Al Horford for elbowing Cavaliers guard Dellavedova.
He had scored a team-high 14 points before the controversial referee’s decision.
“Horford threw an unnecessary and excessive forearm/elbow to Dellavedova, making contact above the shoulders, therefore a flagrant 2 foul was called on Horford,” the NBA’s officiating Twitter account explained.
Despite playing without injured Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, the Cavaliers prevailed, improving their postseason record to 11-3.
Asked about the team’s mindset moving forward inn the best-of-seven series James said:
“It is the same as the first three games. We are desperate. We are a banged up team. We just play for one another. We give ourselves a chance to win.”
Game 4 is on Wednesday morning in Cleveland.
