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RECAP: Cleveland Cavaliers drop season opener vs. Toronto Raptors 116-104

The Cleveland Cavaliers began their 2018-19 season with a 116-104 loss to the Toronto Raptors.
Credit: Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images

The Cleveland Cavaliers' second post-LeBron James era began as one might expect: With a loss. Thanks to a 116-104 defeat at the hands of the Toronto Raptors, the Cavs will begin their 2018-19 season with an 0-1 record, falling to the team that may have replaced them as the favorite in the Eastern Conference.

Kevin Love scored a team-high 21 points for Cleveland, but struggled shooting 5-fo-18 from the field. Cedi Osman added 17 for the Cavs, with rookie Collin Sexton scoring 9 points in his NBA debut.

Raptors All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry scored a game-high 27 points, with newly acquired Kawhi Leonard adding 24. What follows is a running recap and diary of the game, complete with highlights and analysis.

Fourth quarter

Final: Raptors 108, Cavs 104

Raptors pull away in the final few minutes as the Cavs fail to generate any consistent offense away from the free throw line.

3:08: Raptors 108, Cavs 100

Cavs chipping away at the free throw line, currently down 8 with a Cedi Osman free throw forthcoming. For a team that hasn't gotten much going offensively, Cleveland's done a great job getting to the line, as evidenced by its 35 free throws.

7:29: Raptors 100, Cavs 88

Cavs hanging around as Collin Sexton strings together some strong plays, including a leaning and-1 jumper. The Raptors, though, are still scoring at will, which is a problem against a team with a double-digit lead.

10:51: Raptors 90, Cavs 81

AND HERE COME THE CAVS!

OK, maybe not quite. But Jordan Clarkson did just reel off six straight points to start the fourth quarter, forcing a timeout from the Raptors as the Cavs cut their lead to single digits.

Third quarter

End of quarter: Raptors 90, Cavs 75

Cavs show some fight, but fail to trim Toronto's lead to anything smaller than 14. Love with 14 points and Osman with 13. Kawhi Leonard leads all scorers with 21.

5:49: Raptors 82, Cavs 63

Boy, things really escalated quickly.

Tough to point to one thing the Cavs are doing particularly well tonight. On the other hand, Toronto looks every bit like the co-favorite in the Eastern Conference it is.

10:07: Raptors 68, Cavs 53

Fast start by the Raptors, spearheaded by an early 3 from Danny Green and a Kawhi Leonard dunk. Cavs simply don't have the horses anymore to keep pace with a team this talented.

Second quarter

End of quarter: 58, Cavs 47

Raptors out-score the Cavs 33-22 for the quarter while shooting 53% from the floor. Perhaps the biggest concern for Cleveland at this point is that Kevin Love is shooting 1-for-9 from the field and he still leads the team with 9 points.

Collin Sexton's first half of NBA basketball: 4 points, 3 fouls, 2 turnovers, 0-for-3 from the field.

2:21: Raptors 54, Cavs 41

Things falling apart quickly for the Cavs with Toronto shooting 6-of-14 from 3-point range. Still tough to tell where the points are going to come from for the Cavs, especially with Rodney Hood having only scored 6 points on 3-of-8 shooting.

6:39: Raptors 42, Cavs 36

Cavs still fighting -- largely with the starters still on the floor -- but Toronto might just have too much firepower to keep up with. Ex-Cav Danny Green sinks a 3 as the Raptors push their advantage to six.

Stats of note: Kevin Love up to 8 points, with Jordan Clarkson adding 7 off the bench. Tristan Thompson with 8 rebounds in 15 minutes of action.

First quarter

End of quarter: Raptors 28, Cavs 25

Sexton has been plenty aggressive, already attempting four free throws in four minutes, but the 19-year-old has also missed both of his first two field goal attempts. The Raptors went on a nice run to close the quarter and appear to have found their footing following a slow start.

2:40: Cavs 21, Raptors 20

Osman continues to be impressive, at one point getting a steal and then going to coast to coast for a layup. Kevin Love has been aggressive as well, which is what the Cavs will obviously need from him. All eyes now on Collin Sexton, as he checks in to make his NBA debut.

6:35: Raptors 11, Cavs 10

Cavs are playing hard, but it's already easy to see how hard it might be to come by buckets this season. Cedi Osman just hit a 3, which would be a potential game-changer this season if he can do so on a consistent basis.

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