Warriors vs. Cavaliers: Game 3 Score and Twitter Reaction from 2016 NBA Finals

The Cleveland Cavaliers looked like title pretenders through the first two games of the NBA Finals, but they rediscovered championship-caliber form Wednesday night with a resounding 120-90 Game 3 win over the Golden State Warriors at Quicken Loans Arena.   

The Eastern Conference champions are now 8-0 at home this postseason and one victory away from knotting the series at two games apiece. Game 4 is slated for Friday evening. 

Facing must-win circumstances, LeBron James told his teammates before the game to "follow my lead and do your job," according to the Associated Press' Tom Withers. 

Each side held up its end of the bargain. 

James was magnificent with 32 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, but the most encouraging part of his performance was a 14-of-26 shooting display that included a flurry of face-up and spot-up jump shots that were previously absent from his repertoire. 

Kyrie Irving, who entered Game 3 shooting 33.3 percent from the field for the series, was similarly strong in the scoring column with 30 points on 12-of-25 shooting, including 3-of-7 from three, and eight assists. 

The Cavaliers were also buoyed by stellar efforts from supplementary contributors. After making just three shots total in Games 1 and 2, J.R. Smith lit up the Warriors to the tune of 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 5-of-10 from three. 

Tristan Thompson mauled Golden State with 14 points and 13 rebounds, including seven on the offensive glass. And with Kevin Love (concussion) out, Richard Jefferson slid into the starting lineup and held down the fort with nine points, eight rebounds, two dimes and two steals. 

The Warriors had no answers for such a balanced effort. Stephen Curry mustered just 19 points on 6-of-13 shooting (3-of-9 from three), and Klay Thompson was limited to 10 points after suffering a left thigh contusion in the first half, according to Warriors PR on Twitter. 

As a team, the Warriors committed 18 turnovers that led to 34 Cleveland points, and the Cavaliers exuded far more confidence from start to finish.  

Coming off two uninspiring losses in the Bay Area, the Cavaliers needed a strong opening statement if they wanted to try to erase the memories of underwhelming performances past. As it turns out, they grasped the importance of imposing their will, according to The Ringer's Bill Simmons: 

En route to building a double-digit lead that climbed as high as 20 points in the first quarter, the Cavaliers benefited from an uptick in kinetic energy on both ends of the floor. Instead of ball-watching on defense and standing around watching isolations on offense, the Cavs closed out aggressively, rotated with focus and moved the ball with tremendous success. 

The driving force behind that early explosion was Irving. 

After making five shots total in Game 2—and 12 combined over the series' first two contests—Cleveland's point guard erupted for seven made field goals and 16 points in the opening quarter: 

But even though the Cavaliers led by 17 points following the first frame, they couldn't cling to a double-digit lead throughout the second quarter. 

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr turned to his death lineup, and the defending champions steadily chipped away at Cleveland's edge until it dwindled to eight points at halftime. While that was hardly ideal, it also wasn't disastrous considering Curry tied a season low with two points in the half. 

However, Golden State couldn't build on silver linings.

Draymond Green (six points) was a relative non-factor when James operated as his primary defender, Thompson continued to struggle with his jumper, and Curry was uncharacteristically sloppy in all phases, as ESPN.com's Zach Lowe noted:

The Warriors' problems were compounded by the fact that LeBron found his jumper in the third quarter.

After appearing reluctant to shoot outside the paint throughout the first half—and the series' first two games, really—James squared up and drilled a pair of mid-range looks that preceded a pull-up three in semi-transition, as the NBA documented on Twitter:

At that point, the floodgates opened. 

James was in rhythm. Smith found his groove on the perimeter. Thompson crashed the glass with gumption. And Irving continued to slice and dice his way to the rim against a Warriors defense that appeared listless.

The Cavaliers pushed their lead back to 20 points by the time the third quarter came to a close, and LeBron provided the exclamation point when he threw down a vicious alley-oop slam courtesy of an Irving lob:

With an emphatic response in hand, the Cavaliers have a blueprint to work from as they seek to even the series when Game 4 rolls around Friday night.

That said, head coach Tyronn Lue may be forced to make some tough lineup decisions if Love clears the league's concussion protocol. Although the stretch 4 provides invaluable versatility on offense, his lack of foot speed and defensive savvy was glaring in Games 1 and 2. 

Wednesday, the Cavaliers looked far more explosive, disruptive and physical in all aspects—and it could be dangerous to tinker with such a successful formula, as Simmons noted: 

The Warriors, on the other hand, need improved performances from the Splash Brothers. While that may sound overly simplistic, neither player has topped 20 points in a game this series, and heightened production is imperative when it comes to taking the pressure off of bench contributors who have shouldered the scoring load. 

Kerr will also need to examine the prospect of deploying smaller lineups earlier and more often. Center Andrew Bogut was a ghastly minus-21 in just 12 minutes, and the Warriors can create more havoc when they shrink personnel groupings, speed the pace up and give the opponent a different look on defense.   

Postgame Reaction

James took time to discuss the big win with ESPN's Doris Burke once the final buzzer sounded: 

"I give the game ball to RJ—starting for Kevin," James added, per the NBA on ESPN's Twitter account. "He came out with so much aggression."

Later, Tristan Thompson broke down how the Cavaliers were able to respond with their season on the line, via NBA TV on Twitter: 

"We weren't ready to play," Kerr said, per Bleacher Report's Sean Highkin. "They punched us in the mouth. We were extremely soft to start the game."

"It wasn't lineups, it wasn't substitution patterns, we just got our tail kicked," Kerr added, according to the Associated Press' Brian Mahoney.

Green expressed a similar sentiment when asked to evaluate his team's performance.

"They came out like their season was on the line, and we came out like it was peaches and cream," he said, per the Washington Post's Tim Bontemps.  

Curry was quick to put the blame on himself.  

"I have to play 100 times better than I did, especially in the first quarter," Curry said of his effort, according to Sports Illustrated's Ben Golliver. "... I'm fine. We're in good shape."

As for potential tactical adjustments in Game 4, Lue played things close to the vest when asked how he will deploy Love on Friday night, per the New York Times' Scott Cacciola: 

"I think the game would’ve been the same whether he played or not," Kerr said of Love, according to USA Today's Jeff Zillgitt.