The fourth installment of the NBA Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors will tip off on Thursday night from Oracle Arena. The Cavaliers have lost two of the previous three Finals matchups with the Warriors and enter this series as the biggest underdogs in the last 16 seasons. On Sunday night, Cleveland advanced to the NBA Finals with an 87-79 road triumph over Boston in Game Seven of the Eastern Conference Finals. The Cavaliers outscored the Celtics by 12 points in the second half and limited them to 34 percent shooting on the night.
LeBron James willed his team to victory with 35 points to go along with 15 rebounds and nine assists. Jeff Green started in place of injured Kevin Love and finished with 19 points on 7-for-14 from the field.
The defending NBA Champion Golden State Warriors overcame plenty of adversity in the Western Conference Finals to get to this point. The Warriors played without starting F Andre Iguodala in the final four games and became the first team to overcome double-digit second half deficits in two elimination games in the same series. On Monday, Golden State outscored Houston by 18 points during the third quarter of a 101-92 road victory in Game Seven. The Warriors knocked down 16-for-39 from long range and assisted on 25 of their 39 made field goals.
Kevin Durant poured in a game high 34 points on an 11-for-21 shooting performance. Steph Curry contributed 27 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds for the Warriors.
