Cleveland Cavaliers set up Golden State Warriors rematch

May 27, 2017 Sports

BBC Sport – Cleveland Cavaliers set up their third straight NBA Finals appearance against Golden State Warriors with a dominant 135-102 win over Boston Celtics.

LeBron James scored 35 points as the Cavs saw off the Celtics to reach the NBA Finals. (Getty Images)

Kyrie Irving and LeBron James combined for 79 points at Boston’s TD Gardens to claim the best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals 4-1.
James, 32, surpassed Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan as the all-time leading scorer in the play-offs.
The Warriors swept San Antonio Spurs 4-0 in the Western Conference finals.
They were crowned NBA champions in 2015 but were defeated last year as Cleveland’s 52-year wait for a major sporting title came to an end.
Game one of the NBA Finals takes place at the Warriors’ Oracle Arena in Oakland on Thursday, 1 June.
King James passes Air Jordan
Cavs small forward James hit a three-pointer from the left wing in the third quarter to pass Jordan’s record of 5,987 play-off points, which had stood for 19 years.
James, who is chasing his fourth NBA title this year, finished with 35 points in the game to set a new mark of 5.995 points in 212 play-off games, while six-time NBA champion Jordan set his record in 179 games.
He has scored 955 of those points against Boston, the most for any player against any team.
Victory secures a seventh consecutive NBA Finals for James, winning two titles in four appearances with Miami Heat between 2011 and 2014, before returning to home-town team Cleveland.
The Cavs also set a franchise record for most points in a quarter in the play-offs by recording 43 in the first quarter of game five against the Celtics.