WASHINGTON, May 1 (Xinhua) -- LeBron James scored 35 points, Kyrie Irving added 24 as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Toronto Raptors 116-105 on Monday in the opener of their Eastern Conference semifinal.
James also had 10 rebounds, four assists, one steal and one block. Irving added 10 assists. Love had 18 points and 10 rebounds. Tristan Thompson finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds.
"As a team I think we had great energy, and even some of the mistakes that we had we were able to cover up for because our energy level was high. But we'll be a lot better on Wednesday," James said.
Kyle Lowry scored 20 and DeMar DeRozan 19 for the Raptors, who dropped to 1-12 in playoff openers. Serge Ibaka added 15 points and 6 rebounds.
Cavs built an 18-point lead in the first half but watched the Raptors go on a 19-3 run to pull within seven in the third quarter before James dropped two 3-pointers and converted a three-point play to put the game beyond reach.
Game 2 is Wednesday night.
