LeBron steamrolls Raptors for 43 points to put Cavs up 2-0

At the end of the third quarter of Game 2, ESPN announcer Mark Jones - a native of Toronto himself - said the Raptors were playing in "LeBronto."

He wasn't wrong.

LeBron James lit up the Raptors to the tune of 43 points in 41 minutes of action as Cleveland took a commanding 2-0 series lead with a 128-110 victory at the Air Canada Centre on Thursday. He barely missed out on a second straight triple-double, dishing out 14 assists (tying a playoff career high) and grabbing eight boards.

It was his 16th career playoff game with at least 30 points and 10 dimes, passing Michael Jordan (15) for the most in NBA history. He's also the only player to ever record 14 assists with at least 40 points in a postseason outing.

James took 19 shots in the second half, converting 13 of them for 27 points. He hit seven fadeaway jumpers, tying the most makes on that type of shot in the postseason in the last 15 years.

Even with a Raptors defender draped all over him, the four-time league Most Valuable Player found a way to put the ball through the mesh, setting a new playoff record with 17 makes on contested shots.

Toronto has gone through this song and dance before. The Raptors were swept by LeBron's Cavaliers last year in the conference semifinals, and fell in six in the 2016 conference finals.

When up 2-0 in a best-of-seven series, James' squads are 21-0. The Raptors, meanwhile, have never bounced back from a 2-0 deficit (0-6), let alone after dropping the first two games on their home floor.