The Boston Celtics put together a convincing victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday.
Cleveland looked flat-footed against a Boston squad firing on all cylinders. The C’s topped the Cavs 141-103 at TD Garden and snapped a three-game losing streak in the process.
Jaylen Brown had yet another stellar performance with 33 points in 19 minutes. That’s the most points any player has scored in less than 20 minutes in NBA history, per Sportradar.
Carsen Edwards, meanwhile, matched his career-high 18 points.
Kemba Walker (21 points), Daniel Theis (17 points), Marcus Smart (12 points) and Aaron Nesmith (11 points) also scored double figures.
The Celtics improved to 9-6 while the Cavs fell to 8-8.
Here’s how it all went down:
STARTING FIVE
G: Kemba Walker
G: Marcus Smart
F: Jaylen Brown
F: Daniel Theis
C: Tristan Thompson
STARTING STRONG
This was perhaps one of the best quarters we’ve seen from the Celtics this season.
Cleveland got on the board first, but Boston followed that up with a quick 13-2 run. Walker and Thompson were particularly aggressive early and combined for 10 points and 10 rebounds in the first.
Theis and Smart, meanwhile, looked stellar on both ends of the court, and it gave Boston a big-time boost. Smart led all scorers with 10 points.
The C’s put up a whopping 38 points in the first 12 minutes. At the time, it was the team’s highest-scoring first quarter of the season.
Thanks to Boston’s dominance, Cleveland found itself in a 15-point hole entering the second quarter.
NOTHING BUT NET
Things didn’t change much in the second.
The C’s continued to dominate the Cavs, even with most starters on the bench to start the quarter. Semi Ojeleye posted six points in the second while Robert Williams and Carsen Edwards put up five points apiece.
Boston pushed its lead to 23 midway through the quarter with its starters back in the game. Collin Sexton and Cedi Osman helped the Cavs pull within 17 a couple of times, but the C’s always managed to build its lead back up to 20-plus points.
Brown and Walker both racked up 13 points while Smart added 12. Smart and Walker combined for eight assists and six steals in the half, as well.
Andre Drummond (11 points) was the only Cavs player to post double figures.
Boston finished the half up 22.
The Celtics’ 73 first-half points are the most they’ve scored in any half this season, according to Celtics Stats. It was their highest-scoring first half since March 2019, per Forbes’ Chris Grenham.
THE JAYLEN BROWN SHOW
If you thought things couldn’t get much better, you thought wrong.
Brown took over in the third, posting 12 points in the first 3 1/2 minutes of the quarter. Boston extended its lead to 30 points in the same span.
But the C’s didn’t stop there, extending their lead to 41 midway through the quarter.
Brown reached the 30-point mark with 3:22 left in the frame. He finished the third with 33 points on 13-of-20 shooting.
This is the second time Brown has scored 30-plus points in consecutive games in his career, per Celtics Stats.
Boston’s 41 third-quarter points marked the first time the team scored 40-plus points in a quarter this season, per Celtics Stats.
The C’s took a 114-78 lead into the fourth.
GOODNIGHT
Boston’s 36-point lead simply was too much for Cleveland to overcome.
The Cavs started the frame on a 10-2 run, but it didn’t eat up much of Boston’s monstrous lead. The Celtics’ advantage hovered around 30 points through much of the quarter.
Celtics fans even got a little Tacko Fall time in the fourth. The big man didn’t score, but did collect two rebounds and a block.
Try as they might, Cleveland couldn’t find a way to trim back Boston’s lead.
PLAY OF THE GAME
There simply are too many to choose from tonight.
UP NEXT
The Celtics are off to Chicago to play the Bulls at United Center on Monday. Head coach Brad Stevens expects Jayson Tatum will return to game action after a five-game absence due to COVID-19.
Tip-off is slated for 9 p.m. ET.
