For the third straight year, DeMar DeRozan and the Toronto Raptors had their season cut short at the hands of LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. And once again, it came by way of a four-game sweep.
LeBron and the Cavs wrapped up their series against the Raptors last night with a 35-point victory, in which DeRozan finished with 13 points on 5-of-11 shooting and a series-low minus-29. DeRozan was also ejected from the game after a flagrant two in the fourth quarter.
In the four games of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, LeBron recorded 136 points, 45 assists and 33 rebounds, while DeRozan and Kyle Lowry combined for 138 points, 46 assists, 30 rebounds.
After another disappointing finish to their season, the Raptors All-Star shooting guard recalled how rough the last three seasons have been.
"The last three years have been rough for us, competing against this team," DeRozan said postgame. "Maybe they just got our number.
"Things just don't go right for us. Whatever it is — it could be a lot of things. All I know is the last three years they have been a reason why we haven't advanced."
"It's not just him going out there scoring 128 points," DeRozan continued. "The guys around him that he gets involved in the game make plays for them.
"There's a lot of things he does for his teammates to get them going. It's definitely been a challenge for us over the years."
"All you can ask for at the end of the day is to have the opportunity to face him to try to make up for the previous time," DeRozan said. "We just couldn't get it done this time around."
Last night's 128-93 win marked Cleveland's 10th straight post-season victory against Toronto, as the Cavs have now swept the Raptors in back-to-back playoffs and have eliminated them from playoff contention in three straight years.
LeBron and the Cavs are now heading back to the Eastern Conference Finals for the fourth consecutive season. For LeBron, it will be his 10th Eastern Conference Finals appearance in the last 12 seasons.