Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Tyronn Lue admits his team was lucky to escape the hostile Toronto environment with a win.
After staying close with the Raptors throughout the game they managed to force overtime and eventually prevailed 113-112 walking away with homecourt advantage and a 1-0 series lead .
''We definitely stole one, we didn't play our best game,'' he said following the game.
"They attacked us early and caught us on our heels, we weathered the storm and stayed the course.''
"JR, Kyle, Tristan, Jeff Green did a great job stepping up tonight."@cavs HC Tyronn Lue after their Game 1 victory in Toronto. #GameTime pic.twitter.com/sZqnaz16qK
— NBA TV (@NBATV) May 2, 2018
With LeBron James having an off shooting night (12-30 FG, 1-8 3PT, 1-6 FT), the Cavs supporting cast finally stood tall.
JR Smith became the first Cavs player in the playoffs not named James to score at least 20 points, while Kyle Korver chipped in with 19.
Lue heaped praise on the performance of Tristan Thompson, who posted 14 points and 12 rebounds (9 offensive), but stated he won't be making any changes to the starting lineup for the time being.
''I like his impact off the bench, he can change the game with his offensive rebounding,'' Lue said.
There was a stark contrast in the press conferences as Toronto Raptors coach Dwane Casey stated his side was the ''better team'', but fell apart down the stretch.
''We're a better team, we just didn't make shots down the stretch. We got stagnant offensively and stopped moving,'' Casey said.
''I don't know if it was nerves or what but we shot ourselves in the foot.''
'I think we're the better team. We just didn't make shots down the stretch."
— NBA TV (@NBATV) May 2, 2018
Raptors HC Dwane Casey after the Game 1 loss.#GameTime pic.twitter.com/8DJXMwYiiJ
The Raptors will be hoping the nerves don't get to them again when Game 2 gets underway on Thursday night.