TORONTO (AP) 鈥� Scottie Barnes hit the go-ahead free throws in the final minute and finished with 23 points, Brandon Ingram also scored 23 and the Toronto Raptors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 93-89 on Sunday, tying the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series at two games apiece.
The best-of-seven series shifts to Cleveland for Game 5 on Wednesday.
鈥淣ow it鈥檚 a best of three,鈥� Cavaliers guard James Harden said.
RJ Barrett scored 18 points and Collin Murray-Boyles had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Raptors, who won despite shooting 4 for 30 from 3-point range.
鈥淲e鈥檙e just trying to go out there and win, take it one possession at a time,鈥� Barnes said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 all we鈥檙e focussing on.鈥�
Barnes had nine rebounds and six assists as Toronto won back-to-back postseason games for the first time since a first-round loss to Philadelphia in 2022.
鈥淲e just never, never flinched,鈥� Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic said. 鈥淲e continued guarding and guarding.鈥�
Donovan Mitchell scored 12 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter and Harden added 19, but the Cavaliers couldn鈥檛 overcome an 18-turnover performance.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no doubt they鈥檝e had the physicality advantage, the energy advantage these last two games,鈥� Cleveland coach Kenny Atkinson said of Toronto. 鈥淯sually happens with the home team, gets that bump. We鈥檝e got to turn it back around. That鈥檚 how the playoffs go.鈥�
Mitchell missed two shots in the final 25 seconds, including a 3-pointer that would have tied the game. He finished 6 for 24 overall and made 4 of 12 shots from deep.
鈥淚 got some open looks tonight and they just didn鈥檛 fall,鈥� Mitchell said.
Sam Merrill scored 14 points and Jarrett Allen had 15 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who were outscored 10-2 in the final 1:54 of the fourth.
鈥淲e had an opportunity tonight to win the game,鈥� Harden said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e definitely confident about where we are.鈥�
After Barrett鈥檚 driving shot cut the deficit to 87-86 with 49 seconds left in the fourth, Mitchell couldn鈥檛 get the ball across half court in time, giving possession to Toronto.
鈥淚 made a mistake in a crucial moment,鈥� Mitchell said.
Barnes was fouled as he drove to the basket and made both, giving the Raptors an 88-87 lead with 34 seconds left.
With NBA Commissioner Adam Silver in attendance, both teams struggled from 3-point range. Cleveland finished 10 for 40 from deep, including 5 of 10 in the fourth.
The Raptors missed 14 consecutive 3-point attempts to open the game before Barrett connected with 8:31 left in the first half.
Ingram missed nine of his first 10 attempts but finished the half by making three straight, including a buzzer-beating 3 that gave Toronto a 38-36 lead at the intermission.
Harden had more turnovers (six) than made baskets (four) in the opening half, while Mitchell shot 3 for 15 through three quarters.
鈥淥ur defense gave us a chance,鈥� Mitchell said. 鈥淥ffensively, I wasn鈥檛 great. We weren鈥檛 hitting shots but our defense was solid. We can build on that and continue to hang our hat there and the offense will come around.鈥�
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