Did you say 82?

AP Photo/ Eric Risberg

With the Cavaliers facing elimination all hopes of a championship were riding on the star players of the squad. And last night two of the three delivered. LeBron James was finally aggressive and looking for his own shot rather than passing. He also shot the ball from the perimeter with the cushion that the Warriors were giving him on defense. Kyrie has played well in the last two games for Cleveland and he played probably one of the best games of his career last night. Kyrie scored 41 points on 17-24 shooting. That is 70% from the field! He also had 6 assists. He was not the only one in the game with 40 points. LeBron James also had 41 points on 16-30 shooting. He also had 7 assists and a monstrous 16 rebounds! He played a lot like he did during last years finals and that is what he has needs to continue to do. Irving and James were the first teammates in Finals history to score 40+ points in the same game.

Many people are going to speculate about whether or not these two would have combined for 82 points had Draymond Green played last night. I think the Warriors defense would have been better at the hoop, but it would not have stopped LeBron and Kyrie from making all the threes that they did. Cleveland should feel very good about returning home after how they played last night. They know they are capable of beating this Warriors team and the role players for Cleveland should be much more energized and ready to go feeding off the home crowd. The two problems for the Cavs are will LeBron shoot this well from beyond 5 feet again? And two, can Kevin Love impact the game in any way? Kevin Love was a no show last night scoring 2 points and grabbing 3 rebounds. Granted he only took 5 shots, but he is not doing what the Cavs brought him there to do. As of right now Love would probably be better served playing with the second unit and Jefferson should start. This would give the Cavs a much better offensive punch off the bench and allow them to match the Warriors small ball line up for next game.

Getty Images/ Ronald Martinez

Speaking of which. Last night Bogut went down late in the game with a knee injury. If he is out for next game Green might get the start at center. Bogut does not play too much, but he a good cutter and passer. This allows the guards to free themselves on the perimeter or keep the opposing teams center from cheating over to help. What Bogut contributes most to the Warriors is his defense. He is a big body that can alter shots. Him paired with Green makes it hard for any team to finish around the hoop. If Bogut is out he will be missed, but it will not be devastating blow.

I, like many others, hope we get a 7 game series. I also hope that the Cavs play this well again because it is exciting watching LeBron James and Kyrie Irving playing at their best. For now Game 6 awaits. Will the Warriors win back to back championships or will the Cavaliers be just the third team in Finals history to push a 3-1 series deficit to 7 games? That will be decided Thurday night at 9.