CLEVELAND — After a valiant effort that ended in defeat, the Cleveland Cavaliers cited a huge free throw differential as a key factor in their 109-102 loss to Boston in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Celtics on the road shot 24 free throws and made 21 on Monday. Cleveland, which scored 42 points in the paint to Boston's 38 (meaning the Cavaliers were pushing at least as much to the rim as their opponents), took just seven foul shots. Five people entered.
The Celtics currently lead the series 3-1 and can close out the series with a win against TD Garden on Wednesday.
“We drive the ball… a lot” Cavs guard Darius Garland said, emphasizing those last two words. “We had seven free throws, two of which were technical, so it's tough to make five (free throws) in a 48-minute game.”
Cavs coach JB Bickerstaff said he was “disappointed with the way the whistle went” in Game 4.
“I thought our players deserved better because of the way they played,” Bickerstaff said. “They were attacking in the paint. You know, they were shooting the same way (Boston) did.
“We're not looking for more, but we're looking for parity,” Bickerstaff added. “From that standpoint, I don't think we had an equal opportunity tonight.”
Cleveland was without two of its top players due to injury, with Donovan Mitchell (left calf strain) and Jarrett Allen (rib contusion) out. Rather than lose against the NBA's best team, which lacks two star players and is already trailing in the series, the Cavs put on a passionate performance. They trailed for much of the first half, but briefly took the lead in the third quarter, making it a two-possession game with 90 seconds left.
The Celtics made eight free throws in the fourth quarter, and the last four points came at the charity stripe. Cleveland's only foul shot in the final period came from Garland with 31 seconds left in the game.
Garland, who scored 30 points in Game 4, mentioned how the Cavaliers were limited to playing near the foul line in the playoffs. In the Game 6 loss to Orlando, Cleveland attempted just 10 foul shots to the Magic's 26. In the decisive Game 7 of that series, the Cavs made 36 free throws. Overall, Cleveland takes 17.5 foul shots per game, ranking 12th out of 16 playoff teams. In this series against Boston, the Celtics are shooting over seven more free throws per game than the Cavs.
“That's ridiculous,” Garland said. “The amount of drives we have, the amount of paint attacks we have…we know how many times we're going to get hit. That we can't hit back if a teammate gets hit or rolled to the floor. I know it happens many times. It's tough.
Garland initially drew a foul on Al Horford on a drive to the basket, during which Garland fell to the floor and a video challenge overturned the call. Sam Merrill took a 3 late in the third quarter and fell to the floor after making contact with Jrue Holiday. Official Tyler Ford ruled that Holliday's hand hitting Merrill's shot after the ball disappeared was legal.
Max Strus appeared to make contact with the rim on several drives. He couldn't blow the whistle and missed all his shots. He was also given a technical foul for insisting on a no-call. He declined to say what officials, including Mark Davis, Courtney Kirkland and Ford, said to him during the game.
“I think we have to find a way to get more,” Strass said. “Get stronger, be more physical at the rim and get it.”
Bickerstaff is as tough on game officials as any of the NBA's 30 head coaches. He always barks when he perceives a missed call or a poor call, or when he feels a similar play went unanswered against the opposing defense.
Although his frustrations rarely carry over into postgame press conferences, publicly complaining about officiating at some point in a playoff series is a long-standing tradition across the league for coaches looking to shake up momentum. It becomes.
The complaints Bickerstaff recorded Monday didn't seem like gamesmanship. On an emotional night where the crowd let out a deafening roar and LeBron James sat courtside, after a home playoff game that the team desperately needed and fought hard for, Bickerstaff probably remembered the disadvantage his team had in the game. It may have been too much to expect that it would be ignored. This line.
“It just didn't seem balanced,” Bickerstaff said.
His thoughts echoed those of Indiana Pacers manager Rick Carlisle, who said after Game 2 of the series against the New York Knicks that his players “should be given a fair shot, and they're not.” Last Friday, he was fined $35,000 for those comments.
(Photo of Darius Garland: Nick Cammett/Getty Images)
