Wrap-Up – The Cavaliers’ Game 2 matchup with Boston wasn’t a thing of beauty, but a 2-0 series lead certainly is. And despite not looking their best, the Wine and Gold will travel to Boston after holding serve, 99-91, at The Q.
After a sluggish start, the Cavaliers found their footing at half and, after a stingy third quarter, LeBron James and Kyrie Irving took over in the fourth – scoring all 28 of Cleveland’s points in the final period. That offensive production – plus Tristan Thompson on the offensive boards – was enough to get past a pesky Celtics squad.
LeBron notched 15 of his game-high 30 points in the fourth quarter, going 6-of-9 from the floor and 3-for-4 from the stripe. Irving was right behind, tallying nine of his 26 points in the fourth – going 2-of-4 from the floor and 4-of-4 from the stripe. Overall, James added nine boards, seven assists and a pair of blocked shots. Irving wrapped up with six assists, five boards and a block.
Timofey Mozgov had another solid defensive outing – leading everyone with five blocks after swatting three in Game 1 – but was just as good on the offensive end on Tuesday, going 7-for-11 from the floor for 16 points and seven boards before fouling out in the closing moments. Kevin Love rounded out the Cavaliers in double-figures – pitching in with 13 points, six boards and a pair of assists.
Tristan Thompson didn’t score a single point on Tuesday, but his work on the boards might’ve saved the Cavs’ bacon down the stretch. On the night, Thompson led Cleveland with 11 rebounds – grabbing five of those off the offensive glass, including a pair of huge offensive boards in the game’s final 92 seconds.
The Cavaliers featured four starters in double-figures and that quintet outscored Boston’s, 92-40. But the Celtics’ bench – who came into the postseason with the league’s highest-scoring second unit – outscored the Wine and Gold’s reserves, 51-7.
Cleveland held the Celtics to just 39 percent shooting on the night and outscored Boston in second-chance points, 16-4, after intermission. The Cavs also out-rebounded the Celts, 27-16, in the second half – including a 12-4 edge in the final quarter.
LBJ leads the way with 30 points.
View some of the best snapshots.
Love reverse alley-oop slam.
Go inside the locker room.
Watch slow-mo game highlights from Tuesday's victory.
Turning Point – For the second straight game, the Celtics took an early lead over the Cavs – opening up a nine-point edge, 45-36, with 4:42 to play in the first half.
But David Blatt’s squad began to right the ship at that point and, after a Mozgov bucket, J.R. Smith ignited the team – and the crowd – with a steal and dunk to get Cleveland to within five. Smith’s next jumper got the Cavaliers to within one and, with a minute remaining in the first half, Kyrie drilled a three-pointer to tie the affair.
After Isaiah Thomas’ put Boston back up, LeBron’s and-one gave the Cavs a 51-50 edge at intermission despite playing a sloppy half of basketball. The Cavs started the second half on a 17-4 run and were able to hold off the scrappy Celtics down the stretch.
By the Numbers – 4,469 … points that LeBron James has scored during his postseason career, eclipsing Jerry West for 7th on the all-time playoff scoring list. Karl Malone is James’ next target at 4,761.
Quotable – Coach David Blatt, on the level of competition in the postseason …
”You all here in Cleveland have witnessed a number of games that we’ve come out of the gate and blown people out early. That’s not going to happen a lot in the playoffs. You have to hang in there sometimes. You have to find your way. You gotta stay with it defensively.”
Up Next –After taking the first two games in Cleveland, the series heads to Boston for Game 3 on Thursday night at 7 p.m., with Game 4 slated for Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. at the TD Garden. If necessary, Game 5 would be back in Cleveland next Tuesday night – time TBD, with Game 6 in Boston next Thursday and – if the Celtics are able to force a Game 7 – it’ll be played back at The Q next Saturday, May 2.