The Cleveland Cavaliers were hitting three-pointers like they were on fire in NBA Jam Wednesday night in Game 2 of their second-round matchup against the Atlanta Hawks. When the carnage was done, the Cavs sunk 25 three-point shots through what Ted Cruz would call a basketball ring, setting a new NBA record for three-pointers made in a game and winning 123-98.
But at least the Hawks had a sense of humor about it.
The Hawks have been one of the more socially-aware professional sports franchises on Twitter, and they got in the fun on the widespread Crying Jordan meme when they posted a graphic for the halftime score. The Cavs were up 74-38 at the half, so the Hawks replaced their own score with the popular image of the Hall-of-Famer sobbing.
Halftime pic.twitter.com/WxQhCekA5L
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) May 5, 2016
Just in case anyone missed the joke, the Hawks were not quite as subtle with the next tweet posted.
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) May 5, 2016
The Hawks had a couple of other humorous tweets at their own expense during the game.
Enough with the corner three's @cavs pic.twitter.com/icZDUYAKvR
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) May 5, 2016
https://twitter.com/ATLHawks/status/728017544314015745
This is fine pic.twitter.com/Iw8Kc7Sdds
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) May 5, 2016
It was a long night for the Hawks, understandably so. The Cavs were locked in from the start, though, draining 18 three-pointers in the first half. Kyrie Irving’s three-pointer early in the second half set the all-time playoff mark at 22. The 25 made three-pointers set an NBA record for most three-pointers in any NBA game, regular season or postseason. The previous playoff record was set by the Golden State Warriors earlier this postseason in Game 4 of their first-round matchup with the Houston Rockets, with 21 threes. Ten different players sank a shot from beyond the arc for the Cavs, including seven from J.R. Smith. LeBron James and Kyrie Irving each hit four. Kevin Love added three.
As a team, the Cavs took 45 three-point shots, giving them a remarkable 55.6 per cent three-point percentage. That’s well above the league-best 41.6 per cent success rate Golden State posted during the regular season. (If you were curious, the Hawks hit 11 three-point shots of their own on 27 attempts Wednesday, a 40.7 per cent success rate that would have been second-best in the league during the regular season, but felt way out of place on this night.)
The Cavs now lead the second round series 2-0 as it shifts to Atlanta for Game 3 on Friday night. Cleveland has yet to lose a game this postseason.
About Kevin McGuire
Contributor to Athlon Sports and The Comeback. Previously contributed to NBCSports.com. Host of the Locked On Nittany Lions Podcast. FWAA member and Philadelphia-area resident.