Matthew Dellavedova helps Cavaliers edge Warriors for 2-1 Finals lead

Sam Amick | USA TODAY Sports

Show Caption Hide Caption Getting to know Matthew Dellavedova Jeff Zillgitt introduce us to Matthew Dellavedova and explains how this virtual unknown has Cleveland two games from an NBA Championship.

CLEVELAND – Breaking down the Cleveland Cavaliers' 96-91 victory over the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena.

What happened: LeBron James had 40 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists as the Cavaliers seized control of these NBA Finals in fierce fashion to go up 2-1.

The cocksure Cavaliers are defending in the kind of dominant way that they never did during the regular season, this time holding the Warriors to 40% shooting while making this once-unthinkable upset seem entirely possible. Without injured All-Stars Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, conventional hoops wisdom would tell you that they had no chance against the Warriors team that won a league-best 67 games in the regular season. Yet here they are.

James, who entered averaging an astounding 41.5 points, 12 rebounds and 8.5 assists in the series, made it all happen yet again for his undermanned team.

Key sequence: Down 84-80 late in the fourth quarter, Curry found Draymond Green for a wide-open three from up top that was the kind of look he has hit so often all season long. But Green, who has struggled so mightily with his shot, instead drove the lane and missed his runner. The Warriors grabbed the offensive rebound, but a Curry behind-the-back pass to Green on the left wing went into the stands because the big man had zigged when his teammate thought he would zag. It was that kind of night for the Warriors.

Cavs pull away: The Cavs used a 12-0 run in the third quarter to push their lead to 20 (68-48), and it sent their home crowd into a tizzy. Curry missed a wide open look in the paint, only to see J.R. Smith bury a three-pointer from the right wing. The momentum kept building from there, with James swatting a Klay Thompson attempt as he drove the left side. James then attacked on the offensive end, drawing in the defense and dishing to Timofey Mozgov for a dunk. It was all going their way. For a while, anyways.

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Chef Curry not cooking: When Curry saw 18 of his 23 shots go astray in Game 2, his prediction of what would likely come next didn't seem unreasonable.

"I doubt this will happen again," he said afterward.

This wasn't nearly as bad as that, but it wasn't good either.

Curry finished with 27 points on 10 of 20 shooting (seven of 13 from three-point range), but he had just three points at halftime. He came on strong late, though, hitting a three-pointer with 27.9 seconds left in regulation to cut the Cavs' lead to four (92-88). He did it again at the 18.8-second mark, hitting a falling three from the left wing over Mozgov's outstretched arm to get the Warriors within three (94-91).

As was the case in Game 2, Cavs guard Matthew Dellavedova had everything to do with Curry's struggles. Unlike Game 2, Dellavedova was an offensive star in this one too.

Delly doing more than 'D': Right about the time the Warriors looked ready to take the lead, Dellavedova did it again. With Curry chasing him atop the key, he drew contact in the lane and hit a falling runner that surely had the Warriors shaking their heads. With the ensuing free throw, the Cavs had the badly-needed breathing room of an 84-80 edge. 'Delly,' as they call him in Cleveland and back home in Australia, finished with 20 points and four assists.

Game-changing review: With the Warriors down 94-91 and 17 seconds left, the Cavs' Mike Miller inbounded from the sideline to Dellavedova but he lost the ball out of bounds when Klay Thompson pressured him. An inadvertent whistle was blown, and the confusion only grew from there. The initial call was Warriors ball, but the call was changed after a review because Thompson's foot was out of bounds when he had touched the ball. James hit two free throws quickly thereafter, and the Cavs had closed the deal.