Cavs fight back from 22-point deficit to knock off Celtics
The Cleveland Cavaliers overcame a 22-point deficit Friday to defeat the Boston Celtics 123-116 on the road.
Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs with a team-high 41 points, which included an individual 10-0 run late in the third quarter to get Cleveland back into the contest. The performance was Mitchell's first 40-point game of the season, with the guard scoring 26 in the second half.
The win marks Cleveland's ninth straight and moves the league-leading Cavaliers to 48-10. Despite the solid results, Mitchell said the team isn't satisfied with what they've done thus far.
"We've done a lot of really good things this season, but I keep telling my guys we haven't done anything," Mitchell said postgame. "All the hype ... it's phenomenal, but we haven't done anything yet. These guys (the Celtics), this is our measuring stick. These guys have won a championship, and we want to continue to get where they're at."
Jayson Tatum nearly willed the Celtics to victory with a game-high 46 points, 16 rebounds, and nine assists. Jaylen Brown recorded 37 points, marking the first time this season that he and Tatum scored 30-plus in the same contest.
Brown, who picked up four personal fouls in the match, wasn't impressed with the officiating. "That kind of shifted the game," he said, per Jay King of The Athletic. "When these little guys flop, they're just inclined to call it."
Boston started the matchup on an 11-0 run and ended the first frame with a 12-point lead. Tatum finished the first half with 30 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, and a block, the first time a player has posted that stat line after the opening two quarters in the play-by-play era, according to NBA journalist Keith Smith.
The Cavs didn't take their first lead until just under nine minutes left in the fourth quarter.
The bench provided a boost for Cleveland, outscoring Boston's substitutes 33-6. De'Andre Hunter led all bench scorers with 12 points.
Boston and Cleveland end their season series by taking two games apiece. With no team topping the other in the regular season, Cavs guard Darius Garland is hoping for a postseason matchup.
"It's 0-0," Garland said, according to Cavs reporter Chris Fedor. "Hopefully, be back here in the summertime. See 'em again for seven."
Both teams return to action Sunday, with the Cavs facing the Portland Trail Blazers and the Celtics taking on the Denver Nuggets.