LeBron James scored 23 points then sat the fourth quarter, Kevin Love scored 25, and Cleveland unleashed tenacious defense on Toronto to regain control of the Eastern Conference finals with a 116-78 rout of the Raptors in Game 5 on Wednesday night.
On their court in front of 20,000-plus screaming, towel-waving fans following two straight losses in Canada, the Cavs opened a 34-point lead in the first half, pushed it to 43 in the second half and took a 3-2 series lead.
James had eight assists and six rebounds in 31 minutes before checking out late in the third quarter with the Cavs up 37. He spent the fourth quarter resting on the bench while Cleveland's reserves finished the romp.
DeMar DeRozan scored 14 and Kyle Lowry 13 for the Raptors, who were overwhelmed from the start. Bismack Biyombo had just four rebounds after getting 40 the past two games. The only positive for Toronto was center Jonas Valanciunas, who returned after missing eight straight games with a sprained right ankle. He scored nine points in 18 minutes.
They can clinch their second straight conference title and trip to the NBA Finals with a win in Game 6 on Friday night in Toronto.
