CLEVELAND – Jayson Tatum scored 33 points and Jaylen Brown added 28. The Boston Celtics looked more like themselves after a stumble at home, defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-93 on Saturday night in Game 3 to take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference. Semi-finals.
The top-seeded Celtics didn’t mess around after losing Game 2 on their home parquet floor by 24 p.m.
This lackluster performance — Boston was favored by double digits — was reminiscent of the first round, when the Celtics lost Game 2 to Miami before winning three in a row to eliminate the Heat.
“We just wanted to come back,” said Tatum, who added 13 rebounds. “Disappointing loss that night, and being in a hostile environment on the road. It was a good test for us to see how we would respond.”
Tatum scored a three-pointer, and the Celtics opened the second half with 14 straight points to take a 23-point lead.
That was too much for the Cavs, who overcame a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit to stun Boston in March.
Donovan Mitchell scored 33 points for Cleveland, but the All-Star guard aggravated his left knee injury in the fourth quarter and suffered a strain. With Boston up 13 and in control, Mitchell left the field with 1:19 left and walked directly to the locker room.
Cleveland got within nine in the fourth, but the Celtics, who made 8 of 35 3-pointers in Game 2, got back-to-back 3s from Payton Pritchard and Derrick White to stave off a Cavaliers comeback. .
Game 4 will be played Monday night in Cleveland.
After being down by 23 and unable to stop Tatum, the Cavaliers got their back.
They cut Boston’s lead to 15 by the end of the third period and scored the first six points of the fourth, sending their towel-waving fans at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse looking for another upset into a frenzy.
But whenever the Celtics needed a bucket, they went to Tatum or Brown, who tore apart Cleveland’s defense by dunking the ball or making difficult, contested jumpers.
Evan Mobley added 17 points, and Darius Garland and Caris LeVert scored 15 points each for the Cavaliers, who lost for the first time at home in these playoffs.
Cleveland was again without quarterback Jarrett Allen, who missed his sixth straight game with a painful rib injury. Allen has been out since Game 4 of the opening-round series against Orlando, and there’s no indication when — or if — he’ll be available.
Mitchell made six 3-pointers and scored 23 in the first half to lead the Cavaliers, but Cleveland didn’t get enough from the rest of its starters or the bench as the Celtics opened up a 57-48 halftime lead.
After the Celtics were stunned at home in Game 2 despite being heavy favorites, coach Joe Mazzola said the message to his players heading into Game 3 was simple.
“Do what you do best, and do it better,” he said.
The Celtics started off cold again, missing their first two 3-pointers before hitting 5 of 8 to take a 30-28 lead after one.
Cleveland got a nice early boost as forward Dean Wade made his first postseason appearance after missing the past two months with a knee sprain. Wade, who scored a career-high 23 against Boston on March 5 when the Cavaliers overcame a 22-point deficit in the fourth quarter, knocked down a 3-pointer on his first touch.
Boston midfielder Kristaps Porzingis missed his fourth straight game due to a calf strain.
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