Caris LeVert stepped again for one more 3-pointer and watched it rattle by the ring as he fell to the bottom, and sat on the ground for just a few moments. The Cavaliers guard had simply been fouled, however he most likely wanted a second to take a breath, too.
Seconds after, the TD Garden crowd began hitting the exits in droves.
LeVert’s four-point play was the dagger on a painful early-season lesson for the Celtics, who realized the Cavs are definitely nothing to mess with this season but in addition have a great deal of work left to succeed in their lofty championship aspirations. Another large lead was misplaced, and LeVert and co-star Donovan Mitchell confirmed their protection isn’t fairly as much as par but. The duo every scored 41 and overcame the Celtics within the second half as they handed them an unpleasant 132-123 time beyond regulation loss.
“We were still in good position to win the game but we didn’t make the winning plays down the stretch,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla stated.
“We have to learn how to win, again. Each season, coming into it, you’re not guaranteed to win. So, it’s valuing the ball. And it’s knowing tendencies and boxing out and rebounding. Just the fundamentals. You just have to relearn and constantly do them.”
The C’s led by as many as 15 after a robust second quarter that put them in management however they misplaced it in a brutal third quarter and in the end second half through which the Cavs imposed their will and made each play when it mattered most. LeVert and Mitchell had been accountable as they outdueled each Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown – who every scored 32 factors – down the stretch in a back-and-forth battle.
The Celtics definitely had their probabilities although. They led by 4 with lower than three minutes to go in regulation when one in every of their largest weaknesses – defensive rebounding – price them in essential moments. LeVert snagged two offensive boards that led to 5 Cavs factors, together with one when he flew into the paint with out being accounted for earlier than drilling a 3 that gave them a one-point with 1:10 remaining.
“You just gotta be alert,” Mazzulla stated of the defensive rebounding points. “You gotta see man, see ball. Just possibly personnel. In a state of affairs like that, simply gotta perceive defensive rebounding is a very powerful factor. …
“We didn’t close out certain possessions,” Mazzulla continued. “I don’t know if it’s as much of an issue as it is just being more consistent on both ends of the floor and not relaxing and just understanding we have to earn every win. I think that’s what the focus is.”
Brown responded with a working layup because the C’s retook the lead however after Jarrett Allen made one in every of two free throws to tie the sport, the C’s had a chance to win on the final play of regulation. Mazzulla opted to not name a timeout as Tatum missed a troublesome fadeaway to ship the sport to time beyond regulation.
“I thought about it but I thought (a timeout) would give a chance to get the defense set and let them put a sub in they wanted and let them talk about it,” Mazzulla stated. “I was happy with the look that we got.”
In time beyond regulation, the Cavs jumped out to a five-point lead however the C’s fought again behind Brown, who hit a 3 earlier than getting fouled on a game-tying transition dunk. That may have modified the momentum, however Brown missed the free throw and on the following Cavs possession, LeVert canned a step-back 3.
The Celtics’ offense acquired stagnant after that. Tatum missed a pull-up 3 earlier than LeVert transformed two free throws the opposite manner, which proved to be the distinction as Brown and Tatum coughed up back-to-back turnovers.
LeVert scored the Cavs’ closing 11 factors – together with his nail-in-the-coffin four-point play to ship the C’s to their second consecutive loss.
“We have to make winning plays,” Mazzulla stated. “We can’t take anything for granted and so we had some empty possessions, we had turnovers and we had offensive rebounds given up. When you do those things, it puts you in a tough spot to win.”
The begin was ugly for the Celtics, who had been already at a measurement drawback even with out the suspended Grant Williams. The Cavs had been getting inside with ease and the C’s had little reply. Blake Griffin checked in to make a two-big lineup however picked up three fouls in two minutes and the Cavs constructed a lead as large as 13.
But the C’s stayed large – rotating Like Kornet and Noah Vonleh into the combo – to match the physicality of the Cavs and eventually noticed some outcomes towards the top of the primary quarter. The Celtics’ second unit – which included Tatum – turned the tides, picked up the defensive depth and turned it into offense. The C’s went on a 17-4 run to finish the body and took a one-point lead on Sam Hauser’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer.
The C’s carried that momentum into the second quarter as they constructed a large lead behind Tatum and Brown, because the duo mixed to attain 27 of the Celtics’ 41 factors within the interval, each stars attending to the ring with ease and making robust finishes.
The spotlight got here late within the quarter, when Tatum drove on Jarrett Allen, didn’t pressure a troublesome play on the rim and kicked out to Brown, who faked a 3 after which discovered Tatum, who relocated and drained a nook 3. Brown then discovered Derrick White for 3 on the following possession because the Celtics constructed a 14-point lead. With higher protection, they in the end took a 13-point benefit into halftime after a 75-point half towards the NBA’s second-ranked protection.
Source: www.bostonherald.com