RJ Barrett made a dramatic 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds left in overtime Friday night as the Toronto Raptors defeated the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers 112-110 to force Game 7 of a first-round Eastern Conference playoff series.
Barrett’s Kawhi Leonard-esque bucket from straight away hit the back of the rim, bounced high into the air and fell in between the mesh. The shot was from the same end of the court as Leonard’s four-bounce miracle during Game 7 against the Philadelphia 76ers that sent Toronto to the Eastern Conference finals in 2019.
Asked by a reporter how many times he dreamed about making a big shot like Game 6’s winning basket, Barrett said, “I still dream about it.”
The hoop set up a deciding game Sunday at Cleveland. The home team has won every game in the series.
Scottie Barnes had 25 points and 14 assists for the Raptors. Barrett finished with 24 points, as did Ja’Kobe Walter. Collin Murray-Boyles contributed 17 points.
Evan Mobley had 26 points and 14 rebounds for the Cavaliers. Donovan Mitchell added 24 points, and James Harden had 16 points, nine assists, nine rebounds and four turnovers. Jarrett Allen scored 14 points, while Dean Wade contributed 10.
“I thought we did a lot of good things,” Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson said. “We rebounded like we asked them to rebound (Cleveland had a 52-38 advantage). We had some really good looks, you know sometimes it’s make or miss but I like a lot of things we did. That’s why you fight so hard to get home-court advantage. We knew this wasn’t going to be easy. This is the playoffs. This is what it’s about.”
Toronto took an 11-point lead into the fourth quarter. After two Cleveland defensive stops, Mitchell nailed a corner 3-pointer and then made a driving layup to reduce the margin to three with 6:54 to go. Mobley’s rebound and dunk cut the gap to one with 5:48 left.
A Barnes free throw had the Raptors up by two with 1:17 to go. Toronto’s shot-clock violation gave Cleveland possession with 15.6 seconds remaining. Mobley’s layup tied the game at 104 with a layup with 11.6 seconds to play in regulation. The Raptors’ Jamal Shead missed a 17-footer to set up overtime.
“We tightened up defensively,” Mitchell said of the Cavs’ fourth-quarter comeback. “I think both sides got a little fatigued naturally in a game like this. We put ourselves in position. We had a bunch of good looks, they didn’t fall and now we’ve got to go home and protect home court.”
After a Toronto turnover, Harden hit a 12-footer to give Cleveland a two-point lead in overtime. Barnes tied it at 108 with a floater with 1:25 to go.
Mitchell’s layup put Cleveland up by two with 33.7 seconds left, and then Shead made one of two free throws to cut the lead to one. Mobley’s turnover gave Toronto the ball with 10.9 left to set up Barrett’s shot.
“Call me crazy, call me psychic, but I saw this one coming tonight … It’s surreal,” Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic said, adding that he drew up the play for Barrett. “It was (in the air for) only half a second, but it felt like an eternity. … I was happy for him, for this team, for this city, that the shot went down.”
“To do it in the city where he grew up in, that’s truly amazing,” Barnes said of Barrett, who hails from Mississauga, Ontario, about 20 miles southwest of Toronto. “The way that shot went in and when we needed it most, he showed up, that’s big time. It’s hard to wrap your head around.”
After Barrett put the Raptors on top, Mobley was off target on a 29-foot attempt at the OT buzzer.
The game was tied at 32 after one quarter.
The Raptors led by nine points after Barnes spun around Harden before dunking with 7:04 left in the second quarter. Cleveland cut the margin to two before Toronto took a 61-51 halftime lead following Shead’s 3-pointer with 51.3 seconds remaining.
A Cleveland turnover led to Barrett’s running layup and a 15-point lead with 5:02 to play in the third quarter. Toronto led 92-81 after three quarters.
Toronto was without Brandon Ingram (heel) and Immanuel Quickley (hamstring).
–Field Level Media
