The Toronto Raptors' relentless defense and timely scoring helped them put the Cleveland Cavaliers away in the fourth quarter of Game 3.
The Cleveland Cavaliers dropped Game 3 on the road against the Toronto Raptors on Thursday, their first loss in the 2025-26 NBA playoffs.
After starting off their postseason with back-to-back wins at home, the Cleveland Cavaliers ran into a focused and forceful Toronto Raptors squad on the road. Their loss came at the hands of Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, and Colin Murray-Boyles, who performed at an extremely high level in a situation where their team needed it.
Barnes, Barrett, and Murray-Boyles were all over the place on both ends of the floor, and a savvy substitution from Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic turned the contest in their favor. Jamison Battle, who was Cleveland's undoing in multiple November regular-season games, knocked down a slew of key shots in the final frame.
On the Cavs' end, they just could not meet the same intensity level that they previously had in the first couple of clashes. Because of that and Toronto's strategy, the Wine and Gold turned the ball over 22 times, which cost the visitors 23 points. The Raptors packed the paint defensively, forcing Cleveland to play in small spaces.
In an episode of Courtside with Cavs last week, Spencer German and I discussed how that particular element could impact the series:
The Cavs have got to make sure they do not give up the rock in live turnovers. Kenny Atkinson said in practice that it's a death sentence because the Raptors run, and they get out in the open floor, and that's how they hurt you. Otherwise, Toronto will have to knock down those threes in order to keep up with the Cavs' offensive firepower.
They're just a really swarming type of team, so you just cannot get caught up in that kind of game. You have to be able to respond to runs, which I think the veteran part of this is gonna help in the huddles, and also, on the floor.
The series between the Cavs and Raptors heads to a pivotal Game 4 on Sunday afternoon up north, scheduled for 1 p.m. ET. There will be a Game 5 at Rocket Arena on April 29 to follow that up.
Whether it will be a 3-1 lead for Cleveland or a tied series is yet to be determined. If necessary, May 1 and May 3 will be the dates for Game 6 and Game 7.
Cleveland currently leads 2-1.
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