Jaylen Brown excited the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night. Derrick White knocked them down.
As it turned out, the Boston Celtics had too much firepower against an underdog Cavaliers team. The Celtics won Game 1 of the second round of the playoff series, 120-95.
Brown finished with 32 points and White hit seven 3-pointers for a 25-point performance. Donovan Mitchell fought back with 33 points, but it wasn't enough for a Cleveland team to play without starting center Jarrett Allen for the fourth straight game.
The Celtics, led by Brown, got off to a hot start, holding a 40-34 lead after a first quarter in which they were unable to turn the ball over. Brown scored 15 points in the first quarter as the Celtics led by 20 points at halftime, 59-49.
White led the way in the third quarter, scoring 14 points in the stanza while making four 3-pointers. His seventh 3-point shot of the game extended Boston's lead to 87-72. Boston led 92-77 entering the fourth.
The Cavaliers didn't respond. Mitchell scored 16 points in the third quarter, but did nothing to slow down the onslaught of an efficient Boston offense. The Celtics extended their lead early in the fourth and did not allow the Cavaliers to threaten their advantage. With Boston leading 115-89 with 3:42 remaining, Cleveland pulled its starters and waived the white flag.
Boston is Thriving Despite a Poor Night by Jayson Tatum
Despite poor shooting from All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum, Boston capitalized on its advantage from 3-point range to get the big win. Boston boasts multiple weapons that can carry the offense on any given night and is one of the few teams in the NBA that can thrive against quality opponents even when their best player has an off night. Tuesday's win against Cleveland was a perfect example of that.
Brown finished with 32 points, six rebounds and two assists on 12-of-18 field goals and 4-of-6 3-pointers. White finished with 25 points and five assists on 9-of-16 shooting and 7-of-16 from the field. -12 from a long distance. Tatum added 18 points while going 7-of-19 from the field and missing all five 3-pointers.
As a team, the Celtics shot 48.9 percent from the field and 39.1 percent from 3-point range (18-of-46). They scored 120 points on 92 field goal attempts. They achieved an overwhelming victory without injuring forward Kristaps Porzisis, who missed two consecutive games after injuring his calf in the first game against the Miami Heat.
The Cavaliers fought back by shooting 41.1% from the floor and 26.2% (11 of 42) from long range. It took 90 field goal attempts to earn 95 points. Mitchell had six rebounds and five assists, making 12 of 25 from the field and 4 of 11 from 3-point range. Evan Mobley was the only Cleveland starter to shoot over 50 percent, adding 17 points and 13 rebounds while going 8-of-12 from the field.
Game 2 of the series is scheduled for Thursday night in Boston.
