Boston Celtics withstand Donovan Mitchell-less Cleveland Cavaliers, 109-102


The absence of Donovan Mitchell loomed large over Monday night’s Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals between the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland’s star guard was ruled out before the game with a left calf injury, but the Cavaliers didn’t make things easy on Boston for the evening. The Celtics withstood multiple comebacks in a game that remained within just two or three possessions for most of the night, fending off the Cavaliers to take a commanding 3-1 in the series.

For the second straight game, the action was spearheaded by the Jays: Jayson Tatum (33 points) and Jaylen Brown (27) carried a Boston offense that seemed a bit unsteady, with Jrue Holiday adding 16 points and Payton Pritchard scoring 11 off the bench. With Mitchell out, the Cavaliers relied on Darius Garland, who scored 30. Evan Mobley and Caris LeVert added 19 points apiece, while Max Strus scored 15 on five made threes.

The Cavaliers opened the night with a quick start, rattling off an 8-2 run in the early minutes of the game, but the Celtics’ response was assertive: a 19-2 run across the ensuing five minutes to put them back in command. At the center of the run was Tatum, who continued his recent scoring uptick with an explosive 16 first-quarter points. Cleveland answered with some timely three-point shooting, making six of their first nine attempts, and a quick start from LeVert (10 points). Boston entered the second quarter with a 37-30 advantage.