Raptors vs. Cavaliers: Game 1 Score and Twitter Reaction from 2016 NBA Playoffs

The Cleveland Cavaliers finished a mere one game ahead of the Toronto Raptors during the 2015-16 regular season, but they looked worlds apart on Tuesday in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.    

Cleveland established control of the series with an overwhelming 115-84 victory at Quicken Loans Arena in a contest that was never in doubt in the second half. The Cavaliers turned a five-point lead at the end of the first quarter into a 22-point halftime lead by winning the second quarter, 33-16, and never looked back.

Kyrie Irving was fantastic for the defending Eastern Conference champions with 27 points, five assists, two rebounds, two steals and two blocks, while LeBron James added 24 points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block. They were the two best players on the floor and never gave the Raptors much of a chance.

ESPN Stats & Info noted Cleveland joined some impressive company with the win:

Toronto did receive 18 points and five assists from DeMar DeRozan but couldn't overcome a subpar effort from its star point guard, Kyle Lowry. Lowry tallied eight points on a mere 4-of-14 shooting and turned the ball over four times against Cleveland's stifling defense. 

The Cavaliers took the floor on Tuesday for the first time since May 8 but didn't look anywhere near rusty after Toronto bolted out to a 7-0 lead. They shot a scorching 68.4 percent from the field and built a 33-28 advantage in the opening 12 minutes behind 12 points from Irving and eight points each from James and Kevin Love.

Mike Prada of SB Nation said, "Toronto is understandably worried about giving up [threes], but some of this perimeter defense is just terrible regardless," while Derek Young of Scout.com highlighted an ominous trend for the Raptors in the first 12 minutes:

The Cavaliers continued to take advantage of Toronto's suspect defense when Lowry and DeRozan were on the bench. Matthew Dellavedova gave Cleveland a commanding 42-28 lead less than three minutes into the second quarter when he drilled a three-pointer and converted an and-1.

As if that wasn't enough, James sent the Raptors a message when he put his team ahead by 17:

James' message was loud, but so was the one from the entire Cavaliers squad. Cleveland established an overwhelming 66-44 advantage by halftime by shooting a blistering 66.7 percent from the field. The combination of James and Irving was unstoppable with 32 combined points on 15-of-18 shooting.  

Orlando Magic guard Evan Fournier was ready to call it a series in the first half of Game 1:

The Raptors did show some fight early in the third quarter and cut the deficit to 66-51, but James responded with an and-1, an assist on an Irving three, two more baskets and a free throw, putting the Cavaliers ahead 77-53 with 8:00 left in the third. Bruce Arthur of the Toronto Star summarized the difference between the Raptors and the four-time MVP:

After the James-led run, the Cavaliers continued to march toward the inevitable victory throughout the third quarter. They took a 95-67 lead into the fourth, and the combination of James, Irving and Love had 65 points to Toronto's 67.

Irving posted team highs with 27 points and five assists, and former Cleveland star Mark Price was impressed with the point guard's command of the game: 

The major pieces for both sides spent the fourth on the bench in a game that was well in hand, but the Cavaliers still managed to push their total to 100 within the first five minutes of the quarter. Colin Cowherd of Fox Sports pointed out the "Cavs' passing [is] several notches above [the] early-season effort. This is [the] offense LeBron wanted. Unselfish. Multiple weapons."

Cleveland's bench maintained its dominance throughout the final 12 minutes, and former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Jesse Holley shared the Internet's recap of the Cavaliers' 115-84 win:

What's Next?

Game 2 in this series is Thursday in Cleveland.

The silver lining for the Raptors is the fact they lost Game 1 in the first round against the Indiana Pacers and the second round against the Miami Heat but managed to bounce back and win each series in seven games. However, they had home-court advantage in the decisive contests of those matchups and wouldn't if the Eastern Conference Finals went a full seven.

What's more, Toronto's realistic goal of earning a split in the first two games in Cleveland is still within its reach. The Raptors looked completely overmatched on Tuesday, but one win on Thursday would change the narrative surrounding the series, especially with Games 3 and 4 at home. They beat the Cavaliers in Toronto twice during the regular season.

As for Cleveland, it continued its red-hot postseason play in Game 1 after so much time off. Fresh legs appeared to win out over rust, which is concerning news for the Raptors. James and Co. still haven't lost in the postseason, and it doesn't look like that first defeat will come anytime soon given the way they played Tuesday. 

Postgame Reaction

Raptors head coach Dwane Casey tried to keep the loss in perspective, per Arthur: “It’s one game. The series isn’t over by any means. The score is embarrassing, but it’s just one game.”

Casey also recognized the Cavaliers had more time to prepare for Tuesday’s contest, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports: “Our hat has to go off to them. They were the fresh team and they earned that right by sweeping the first two series.”

Bismack Biyombo discussed his team's defensive breakdowns, per Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun: “Well, the idea was to live with the two and take away the three and we opened up the back.”

Irving mentioned the same thing from the Cavaliers’ perspective, per Rick Noland of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram: “We wanted to stay in attack-mode tonight. It worked for us, especially on those straight-line drives.”

If it works three more times, the Cavaliers will be in the NBA Finals once again. Cleveland lost to the Golden State Warriors last year, and James knows there is a bigger goal at hand, via the Cavaliers:

If Cleveland continues to play like it did Tuesday, those championship aspirations may become a reality.