Field Level Media
Jan 24, 2021
Jaylen Brown scored 33 points in 19 minutes, Kemba Walker added a season-high 21 points and the Boston Celtics crushed the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers 141-103 on Sunday night.
Carsen Edwards scored 18 points, Daniel Theis added 17 and Marcus Smart had 12 with five steals as the Celtics snapped a three-game losing streak. Tristan Thompson had a game-high 12 rebounds.
Collin Sexton had 13 points to lead the Cavaliers, whose three-game winning streak came to an end. Cleveland turned the ball over 17 times, Sexton responsible for six.
The Cavaliers shot 34-of-85 (40 percent) from the field compared to Boston's 52-of-93 (55.9 percent).
Brown shot 13 of 20 from the field. He became the first player in NBA history to finish a game with as much as 33 points in less than 20 minutes, according to Basketball Reference.
The Celtics blew out the gate to a 15-5 lead less than four minutes in. A 10-0 run helped them to a 25-10 advantage, and they finished the first up 38-21 -- their highest-scoring opening quarter of the season.
Boston's lead reached 20, 43-23, with 11:05 left in the second, and the team kept Cleveland back by no less than 15 the rest of the period. A Javonte Green tip-in at the buzzer had the hosts up 73-51 at the break.
Brown (13), Walker (13) and Smart (12) each scored in double figures during the half. Andre Drummond paced the Cavaliers with 11.
Boston remained in control in the third, its margin surpassing 30 during the course of a 15-0 run midway through the quarter. The Celtics led 101-62 on a Walker 3-pointer with 5:20 left, and Theis followed with a pair of free throws to push the lead beyond 40.
Brown scored 20 in the third before coach Brad Stevens pulled his starters with 2:13 remaining. Boston entered the fourth up 114-78.
The Celtics played their fifth straight game without star forward Jayson Tatum, who is expected to return from his two-week absence with COVID-19 against the Chicago Bulls on Monday.
--Field Level Media