15-1: Boston Celtics halt Cleveland Cavaliers' unbeaten start to season
The Cleveland Cavaliers are good, maybe even really good.
The Boston Celtics are really good, maybe even great. And on this particular night, the Cavs weren’t good enough.
The defending champion Celtics ended the Cavs’ 15-game winning streak and gave Cleveland its first loss of the season with a 120-117 victory Tuesday in an NBA Cup game.
A barrage of Boston 3-pointers, including 14 in the first half, elite shot-making and solid defense stumped the Cavs.
The much-hyped matchup – Boston defeated Cleveland 4-1 in the second round of the playoffs last season – featured the top two offenses in the NBA (Cavs are No. 1 at 122.1 points per 100 possessions and the Celtics No. 2 at 121.4 points per 100 possessions) and two top-10 defenses (the Cavs are No. 7 at 110.7 points allowed per 100 possessions and the Celtics No. 9 at 111.2 points allowed per 100 possessions).
Forward Jayson Tatum, who is a large part of the early-season MVP discussion, led the Celtics with 33 points, 12 rebounds, seven assists and two steals and was one of six Celtics in double figures. Boston (12-3) led 79-58 early in the third quarter.
Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs (now 15-1) with 35 points and eight rebounds, and Evan Mobley had 22 points, 11 rebounds and six assists.
How the Celtics won
Boston outscored Cleveland 66-30 on 3-pointers and shot 51.2% from the field, including 53.7% on 3-pointers. Though Cleveland trimmed a 79-58 deficit early in the third quarter to 88-86 late in the third quarter, it’s difficult to win when outscored by 36 points on 3s.
Boston’s Al Horford scored 20 points, Derrick White added 19 points, Jaylen Brown 17, Payton Pritchard 13 and Jrue Holiday 11 – and don’t forget, the Celtics will get Kristaps Porzingis back in the lineup later this season.
Tough game for Cavs' Darius Garland
Cavs guard Darius Garland, who was the Eastern Conference player of the week last week and is playing some of the best basketball of his career, had just eight points on 3-for-21 shooting, including 0-for-6 on 3s.
What are the NBA Cup implications of the Cavs-Celtics game?
Cleveland and Boston are now 1-1 in East Group C play – behind 2-0 Atlanta – and both still have a chance to advance to the quarterfinals either as the winner of the group or as a wild-card team.
The Cavaliers finish group play against Atlanta and Washington, and the Celtics play Washington and Chicago.
When do the Cavaliers and Celtics play next?
Tuesday’s game was the first of four matchups between the Cavaliers and Celtics. They play again Dec. 1 in Cleveland; Feb. 4 in Cleveland and Feb. 28 at Boston.
Cavaliers vs. Celtics highlights
Notes on the Cavs' winning streak
The Cavs’ 15-0 start – also the longest winning streak in franchise history – tied the second-best start to a season in NBA history, joining the 1993-94 Houston Rockets and 1948-49 Washington Capitols and trailing only the 2015-16 Warriors who started 24-0.
Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson, the early front-runner for NBA Coach of the Year, is also the first coach to start a season 15-0 in his first season with a team.