The Golden State Warriors fought hard in Game 5, but they were able to hold off the Cleveland Cavaliers for a 104-91 victory to take a 3-2 series lead.
Sports video app
NBA Finals Game 5 preview: Cleveland Cavaliers at Golden State Warriors
NBA news: Draymond Green places blame on himself for Golden State Warriors struggles
They are now just one win away from becoming the 2015 NBA champions, but they will have to clinch the Finals in Cleveland during their first opportunity.
They hold home-court advantage though, as Game 7 will be held at Oracle Arena if the Cavaliers are able to force the game of all games.
Despite the score, the game remained tight throughout most of the time. The teams were tied at 22 after the end of the first quarter.
During an epic second quarter, Cavaliers shooting guard J.R. Smith continued to put on a three-point shooting clinic, as he made his fourth one of the game early in the quarter.
After an epic trade of leads with ties, the Warriors prevailed with a 51-50 halftime lead after small forward Harrison Barnes threw down an epic dunk and made a free throw after drawing a foul.
The two teams continued to battle closely in the third quarter, as the score never went beyond a three-point lead until 2:25 remained in the quarter. The Warriors ended the third quarter with a 73-67 lead.
The Cavaliers came clawing back in the fourth quarter as small forward LeBron James and shooting guard Iman Shumpert each made a three-pointer to tie the game at 75.
James made another three-pointer to give the Cavaliers an 80-79 lead with just under eight minutes remaining.
The Warriors instantly responded as point guard Stephen Curry made a three-pointer, and shooting guard Klay Thompson caused the Cavaliers to call a timeout with a three-pointer.
This gave the Warriors an 85-80 lead, but the Cavaliers scored four consecutive points.
After the Warriors took an 86-84 lead with about five minutes left, they began to pull away as small forward Andre Iguodala scored five consecutive points.
The Cavaliers had plenty of hope to storm back as they trailed by seven with three minutes, but Curry reminded everybody of his MVP status with this dagger three-pointer.
After the clock continued to run out, Curry decided to go out with even more style as he made a deep three-pointer that proved to be the real dagger. It gave the Warriors a 100-89 lead with about a minute left.
Curry put on his best performance of the NBA Finals as he scored 37 points on 13-of-23 shooting with 7-of-13 three-point shooting. He also added seven rebounds and four assists.
Power forward Draymond Green added 16 points with nine rebounds while Iguodala scored 14 points with eight rebounds and seven assists.
For the Cavaliers, James carried his team yet again with 40 points on 15-of-34 shooting and 14 rebounds with 11 assists.
He now averages a whopping 36.6 points, 12.4 rebounds and 8.8 assists per game in the 2015 NBA Finals.
Power forward Tristan Thompson added 19 points with 10 rebounds, but Smith was nowhere to be seen in the second half after scoring all 14 of his points in the first half.
The Cavaliers have their backs against the wall now, but they will have an opportunity to keep this historic NBA Finals alive with a home win.
COMMENTS