Kyle Lowry added 23 points and eight assists for the Raptors, who climbed out of an 18-point first-quarter hole to prevail against the team considered to be the favorites in the Eastern Conference heading into the season. DeMar DeRozan chipped in with 17 of his 20 points after intermission as Toronto improved to 11-2 - tied with Memphis for the best record in the NBA.
Kevin Love had a season-high 23 points and Kyrie Irving added 21 and six assists for the Cavaliers, who scored the first 12 points of the game in front of a raucous crowd but couldn't keep up with the Raptors after that and dropped their fourth straight game. LeBron James was a non-factor in the game despite 15 points and 10 assists, as Cleveland was outscored 64-37 in the second and third quarters and shot 14-of-43 during that span.
After Williams single-handedly kept Toronto in the game in the first half, the Raptors took command in the second when DeRozan started a 24-2 run with a three-point play. Williams capped it with a pair of jumpers to turn a four-point deficit into an 85-67 lead with 53 seconds left in the third and Cleveland got no closer than 13 the rest of the way.
Love, coming off season lows of eight points and eight shots in the loss to Washington on Friday, connected on a pair of jump hooks to help Cleveland to a 24-6 lead before Williams took over with 12 points in the final 4:19 of the quarter to pull Toronto within 13. Williams kept pouring it on in the second quarter with a dozen more, including a 3-pointer from the right wing at the buzzer that gave Toronto its first lead, 56-54.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Irving scored 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting in the first half and reached 20 points for the seventh straight game.. … Toronto came into the game with the best turnover margin (plus-5.9) in the NBA and was plus-11 in this one. … Williams drained 6-of-9 shots in the first half, connected on all three 3-point attempts and was perfect on nine free throws in setting a personal best for points in a half.
Toronto | Cleveland | |
Louis Williams 36 | Scoring | Kevin Love 23 |
Kyle Lowry 8 | Assists | LeBron James 10 |
Patrick Patterson 6 | Rebounds | Anderson Varejao 12 |
Louis Williams 15 | Free Throws Made | Kevin Love 7 |
Chuck Hayes 3 | Steals | Kyrie Irving 1 |
Jonas Valanciunas 2 | Blocks | Kyrie Irving 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Toronto | 110 | 40.0 | 8-24 | 38-42 | 20 | 34 | 6 | 8 | 8 |
Cleveland | 93 | 43.2 | 3-16 | 20-29 | 24 | 46 | 6 | 4 | 20 |