Boston Loses at Home, Mitchell Leads Cavaliers to Win in Game Two
Photo Credit: Steven Senne, Associated Press Photo
In another Game Two loss by the Boston Celtics, Donovan Mitchell, scoring 29 points, helped the Cleveland Cavaliers(49-34) take Game Two against the Boston Celtics(64-18) by a score of 118-94, according to ESPN. The anticipated second-round matchup between the Cavaliers and the Celtics features stars such as Donovan Mitchell, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Jrue Holiday, and is sure to reach six or seven games before the series is concluded.
As indicated in the final score, defense was an issue for the Celtics when matching up with the Cavaliers. This defensive depletion is understandable given the absence of the Celticsโ starting Center, Kristaps Porziลฤฃis. The seven-foot-two center averages 20.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per game during the season. Though Porzingis averaged only 12.3 points per game before having to sit out the last couple games due to an injury, he averaged 1.5 blocks per game over the first four games of the first-round matchup with Miami(according to Pro Basketball Reference), showing his evident defensive presence.
Photo Credit: David Butler II, USA TODAY Sports
Jayson Tatum poured in 25 points for the Celtics in the game, but fell short ultimately due to the lack of contribution of his fellow teammates. Tatum was the only Celtics player to score above 20 points, with the next highest-scorer being Jaylen Brown with 19 points. Another glaring contribution to the Celticsโ inability to break 100 points was their inability to shoot the basketball.
Photo Credit: Steven Senne, Associated Press Photo
The Celtics, though they shot 39.1% of their threes and 48.9% of their field goal attempts in Game One of the series, saw those numbers plummet to 22.9% from three-point range and 41.3% from the floor. Though the Cavaliers do have a lack of playoff experience on their roster, a shooting night like the Celtics demonstrated in Game Two opens the door for the Cavaliers to take yet another game and potentially bring the series to seven games.
The Cavaliers, like the Miami Heat did in Game Two of their series with the Boston Celtics, had a streaky night from beyond the arc, heavily contributing to them beating the Celtics. From three-point land, the Cavaliers shot 46.4%(according to Pro Basketball Reference), making 13 of their 28 threes. The Cavaliers also pummeled the Celtics from the field, making 47 of their 86 attempts.
Photo Credit: Maddie Meyer, Getty Images
While the Cavaliers shooting numbers cannot be expected to hover around the values they did for the Game Two win over the Celtics, the Cavaliers can be happy about their 1-1 series tie heading into their home floor.
