Cavaliers finish sweep of Hawks to reach Eastern Conference finals
ATLANTA — The Cleveland Cavaliers swept the Atlanta Hawks for the second season in a row in the NBA Eastern Conference playoffs, but the Hawks did not go quietly Sunday in Game 4. The Cavaliers, the top seed in the East, got 27 points from Kevin Love and a late defensive play from LeBron James to win 100-99 in Philips Arena.
Cleveland will play the winner of the Miami-Toronto series in the East finals.
The Cavaliers’ core — Love, James, and Kyrie Irving — combined for 69 points. The Hawks slowed down Cleveland’s assault from the 3-point line, but Atlanta just didn’t have the offense to back up the defense. The Cavs had at least 20 3s in back-to-back games in the series.
The Hawks led 97-96 with 1:31 to play, but James scored on an inbounds play to make it 98-97. After Cleveland’s Tristan Thompson blocked Dennis Schroder’s drive to the rim, James hit a jumper with 39 seconds remaining to make it 100-97.
Schroder came right back at the Cavs with a drive down the right side to make it 100-99. James missed a three-pointer with 14 seconds left and the Hawks had one last chance. Schroder tried to drive down the lane, but James tied him up for a jump ball.
On the jump ball, and scramble in front of the Cavaliers’ bench, Millsap came up with the loose ball but his shot was too late and missed.
Schroder led Atlanta with 21 points. The Hawks now face big question marks entering the offseason about their core, particularly center Al Horford, who is a free agent.