Oakland

Warriors Defeat Cavs to Capture 2nd NBA Title in Three Years

OAKLAND -- They finished it off.

And they did it in style, with 19,596 souls at sold-out Oracle Arena spending the fourth quarter standing and staring and screaming.

The Warriors, considered by many as a Super Team, derided by some as Super Villains, are Super Champions.

With Kevin Durant scoring a team-high 39 points and Stephen Curry tossing in 34, the Warriors outlasted a resilient Cavaliers team 129-120 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals Monday night to win their second title in three years.

Andre Iguodala fired in 20 points off the bench, Klay Thompson had 11 and Draymond Green added 10, along with a team-high 11 rebounds as the Warriors concluded the postseason at 16-1, the highest postseason win percentage in NBA history.

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The Warriors won despite giving away 25 points in turnovers, being outscored in the paint 62-52 and being outshot 53.4 percent to 51.1. Cleveland won the second-chance-points battle 20-15 and the fast-break points battle 25-18.

LeBron James poured in a game-high 41 points to lead Cleveland, while Kyrie Irving tossed in 26 -- 0 in the fourth quarter.

STANDOUT PERFORMER: Iguodala was tremendous off the bench. Curry did plenty of damage. Green brought fire and hard-hat production. Durant punctuated a magnificent Finals performance with his best offensive show.

Durant’s line: 39 points (14-of-20 shooting from the field, including 5-of-7 beyond the arc, 6-of-6 from the line), seven rebounds and five assists. He played 40 minutes and finished plus-18.

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TURNING POINT:

Trailing the Cavaliers 41-33 after a James dunk with 10:14 left in the second quarter, the Warriors reeled off a 21-2 run to go up 54-43 on a Curry floater with 4:40 left in the half.

The Cavs trailed by 11 (71-60) at the half, by five (98-93) after three quarters. They got as close as three (98-95) early in the fourth before the Warriors pulled away down the stretch, outscoring the 31-27 in the final quarter.

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INJURY UPDATE:

Warriors: No injuries listed. C Damian Jones and F Kevon Looney were placed on the inactive list.

Cavs: No injuries listed. G Kay Felder and C Edy Tavares were placed on the inactive list.

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WHAT’S NEXT:

The victory parade is set for Thursday in Oakland.

Catching a potential title-clinching contest certainly carried a high price. One fan reportedly made NBA history by purchasing two courtside seats for a whopping $133,000, according to ESPN.

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