Cleveland Cavaliers: 5 takeaways from Game 4 in 2017 NBA Finals

4. Foul trouble, low turnovers are key

Hitting seven three-pointers and scoring 49 points in the first quarter is a pretty great way to set a tone, but perhaps just as important was Cleveland’s level of physicality from the opening jump. Namely, they drew a s**t-ton of fouls.

Now, some of those were extremely generous whistles, and as the rest of the game played out, it became increasingly clear the officiating crew had lost complete control of the proceedings. But even though they left eight points on the scoreboard with missed freebies in the first quarter, the Cavs’ 22 free throw attempts in the period were more than five NBA teams averaged per game during the regular season.

With Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala all drawing their second fouls in the second quarter, it became impossible for the Dubs to match the Cavs’ physical play.

The free throw discrepancy actually leaned in Golden State’s favor by the end of Game 4, but that first quarter prevented the Warriors from putting together one of their patented runs, and once the floodgates were opened for Cleveland’s offense, they never closed again.

Even when the officials lost complete control of the game by handing Kevin Love an undeserved flagrant foul, waffling on the Draymond Green technical foul situation and only assessing Zaza Pachulia a technical for seemingly swiping at Iman Shumpert‘s groin, all the lengthy delays for reviews favored the home team with a lead, providing LeBron James opportunities for rest.

That, along with only four turnovers in the tone-setting first half, was pivotal in Cleveland playing a brand of basketball that disrupted the flow of a historically dangerous team.