Kyle Lowry Rues Raptors' Continued Failure Against LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers

Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry was left to rue his side's failure after getting swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in their second round playoff series.

The Cavaliers advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals after defeating the Raptors in a crushing 128-93 Game 4 win Monday night at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.

It means it is the second straight year the Raptors were swept, as well as the third year they were eliminated by the Cavaliers in the playoffs, however, this year was even more painful.

The Toronto side finished the regular season as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference with a franchise-record 59 wins and 23 losses.. They were also facing a Cavs side with next to no rest as they were taken the distance by the Indiana Pacers with their first round series ending just two days before Game 1.

However, it did not help their case as LeBron James proved to be their nemesis yet again.

Despite the 33-year-old having a poor Game 1, the Cavs were able to steal victory in a 113-112 overtime win in Toronto before James registered 43 points, eight rebounds, and 14 assists to establish a 2-0 series lead after a 128-110 win in Game 2.

It looked like the Raptors would bounce back in Game 3 but with the game tied in the dying seconds, James hit a game-winning basket to crush their spirits as the Cavaliers won 105-103 and virtually ended the series.

"We felt like we could possibly make the NBA Finals," Lowry said Tuesday, as per ESPN. "That was our goal."

"To be the best, you've got to beat the best. We've continuously failed against the team that made the Finals the last three years. We weren't ready to be as physical as we needed to be. We did a great job in the regular season, but playoffs are just different."

Teammate DeMar DeRozan, who was ejected in Game 4 for a flagrant foul, described the Raptors' elimination as "the worst feeling" especially considering the regular season they experienced.

"This is probably the toughest, most frustrating, difficult, lowest feeling I've had," DeRozan explained. "You get to that point where you're standing firm through everything and you feel like you can't get knocked down again, and you realize you do get knocked back down again. It's kind of the worst feeling."

The Raptors can take solace from the fact that they were once again eliminated by a side led by James, arguably one of the greatest players of all time. However, DeRozan is not shying away from the prospect of facing him as he still hopes to dethrone him.

"As a competitor, we want to go up against that because the story is sweeter once you dethrone a great," DeRozan added.

The Cavaliers will now have time to rest as they await either the Boston Celtics or the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference Finals with the former currently holding a 3-1 series lead.