LeBron and Love lead Cavs past Celts

LeBron James and Kevin Love had monster performances as the defending NBA champion Cavaliers combined for 70 points in game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals leading the Cavs to a resounding 117-104 victory over the Celtics in Boston.

The victory for the Cavs was a club record 12th dating back to the 2016 Finals against the Golden State Warriors and 9th straight to begin the 2017 postseason.

Tristan Thompson dominated the Celtics on the glass with 6 offensive rebounds, and scored 20 points, Kyrie Irving added 11 points and 6 assist and the Cavs snatched home court advantage in the best of seven series. Game 2 will be played Friday in Boston.

Love connected on 6 of 9 threes, and James flirted with yet another triple-double adding 9 rebounds and 7 assist to his stat line. The game marked the 68th time James has scored 35 or more in a playoff game, easily the best in NBA history.

The Cavs defense held Isaiah Thomas in check with 17 points; well below the 29 points he had averaged against the Cavs.

Frightening for the Celtics is that James said he would be better in Game 2.