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Celtics Wrap: Boston Continues TD Garden Magic, Beats Cavs 96-83 In Game 5

NESN by Joshua Schrock on Wed, May 23, 2018

BOSTON — Same script, different home playoff game. After losing Games 3 and 4 in Cleveland, the Boston Celtics returned home to TD Garden on Wednesday for Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Cavaliers. And their postseason parquet-floor magic continued in front of a raucous home crowd, as the Celtics notched a 96-83 win to push the Cavs to the brink of elimination. The Celtics led almost wire-to-wire, buoyed by a dominant performance from rookie Jayson Tatum, who was aggressive from the opening tip. The Duke product looked for his shot early and often en route to a 25-point performance. Boston’s lead swelled to 19 early in the fourth, but the Cavs fought back to make the TD Garden crowd sweat. Eventually though, the lack of help for LeBron James (26 points) and Kevin Love (14 points) was too much for Cleveland to overcome, as they will head back home needing a win to keep their season alive. Tatum had help carrying the offensive load, with Jaylen Brown (17 points), Al Horford (15 points), Marcus Smart (13 points) and Marcus Morris (13 points) also scoring in double figures. The Celtics now lead the series 3-2. Here’s how Game 5 unfolded:

STARTING FIVE PG: Terry Rozier SG: Jaylen Brown SF: Jayson Tatum PF: Al Horford C: Aron Baynes

LET US BEGIN The Celtics opened the game on a 7-2 run, but Love got going early for the Cavs, pouring in eight points in the first four minutes to help Cleveland take a 12-9 lead halfway through the first quarter. Boston responded with a 10-3 run, capped by a Smart 3-pointer, to claim a 19-15 edge and cause Tyronn Lue to take a timeout with 3:38 remaining in the first. Boston finished the stanza strong, going on a 13-4 run thanks to strong shooting from beyond the arc (6-for-13) and sloppy offense from Cleveland (five turnovers). The C’s led 32-19 after one. Love led all scorers with 10 points, while Tatum paced the Celtics with nine points.

HIGH TENSION The C’s continued their hot shooting to start the second, swelling their lead to 17. A scuffle then broke out at the 10:47 mark as Larry Nance Jr. shoved Morris after the C’s forward jawed at him during a dead ball. Rozier shoved Nance toward the end of the fracas and all three players were given technicals. The Cavs answered the minor fisticuffs with a 12-3 run over the next 3:53 to cut the lead to 39-31 with 6:54 to play. Both teams traded blows for the remainder of the quarter, with Boston taking a 53-42 lead into halftime. James led all players with 16 points and Love added 10 for Cleveland. Tatum led the way for Boston with 12 with Horford and Brown each chipping in eight.

MUCH OF THE SAME The Celtics were able to keep the Cavs at arm’s length for the first half of the third quarter, as Boston’s lead oscillated between nine and 15. Every time James and Love tried to propel the Cavs back into the game, the C’s pushed right back to keep the lead at a healthy margin. Boston led 76-60 at the end of third, led by Tatum’s 21 points (nine in the third quarter). James led all scorers with 24.

FINISHING BLOW Despite the C’s large lead entering the fourth quarter, the final stanza was not without intrigue. Cleveland went on a 9-0 run to trim a 19-point lead to 12 with six minutes to play, but the Cavs’ disjointed offense was unable to sustain its push to get the lead under 10. But the Cavs missed four straight chances to cut further into the lead, and the C’s slammed the door on them. Boston went on a 7-2 run over the next 2:25 to push the lead to 17 and secure a crucial Game 5 win.

PLAY OF THE GAME Let Tatum cook. UP NEXT The Celtics and Cavs will resume their ECF series Friday at Quicken Loans Arena. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m.

112288

Stevens did a great defensive job tonight. Put pressure at the arc by having in your face defense, great switch-offs to avoid many mismatches and put real pressure on James.

1 away!

Let's go Celtics!

Tatum with the type of game a real star has in big games.

Not just leading the team in scoring with 24, but also with 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks. (2 turnovers)

The future is wicked bright!

worcester wrote:Boston's MAGNIFICENT SEVEN





Marcus Smart assumes Charles Bronson's role of Bernardo O'Reilly.

Jayson Tatum is Steve McQueen's Vin Tanner.

Al Horford is Yul Brynner's Chris Adams

Marc Morris is Robert Vaughn's dapper on the run gunman Lee.

Jaylen Brown is James Coburn's Britt.

Terry Rozier is Horst Buchholz's Chico.

Aron Baynes is Brad Dexter's Harry Luck.

........................................

And LeBron is Eli Wallach's Calvera!

One of my all time favorite movies. Now I will hear that music all night!

"Tatum is the main reason the Celtics find themselves so close to the NBA's championship series. He logged a team-high 40 minutes, 45 seconds of playing time and had 24 points with seven rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks.

The last Celtics player with a comparable line in the playoffs was Paul Pierce against the Nets in 2002. Pierce had 31 points with nine rebounds, four assists, five steals and two blocks."

http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/celtics/2018/05/jayson_tatum_among_elite_nba_rookies

"Cavaliers are in deep trouble if Lebron James is exhausted."

http://www.news-herald.com/sports/20180523/cavaliers-are-in-deep-trouble-if-lebron-james-is-exhausted-jeff-schudel

Here is a little chart of the game flow.  It suggests that we had a comfortable lead after our run to close out the first quarter.




It comes from ESPN and can be accessed from the link in the Game On! thread:

http://www.espn.com/nba/game?gameId=401032844

The flat parts are during scoring droughts, the good part is that many of ours lined up with many of theirs.

gyso wrote:Here is a little chart of the game flow.  It suggests that we had a comfortable lead after our run to close out the first quarter.




It comes from ESPN and can be accessed from the link in the Game On! thread:

http://www.espn.com/nba/game?gameId=401032844

The flat parts are during scoring droughts, the good part is that many of ours lined up with many of theirs.

It was a bit scary that we gave the Cavs so many chances really get back in the game in the fourth quarter but virtually every time we missed a shot or turned it over, Cleveland missed a three they would normally make or had a horrible turnover themselves. Lead never got under 8. My kingdom for a win in Cleveland for game 6.

Wow! Tatum!! Sure glad Brad has never heard of me and my advice to start Semi over Tatum to wear down the King. Tatum does remind me of young Pierce - willing to go to the hoop repeatedly, instinctively. Every time I think of Ainge's trading Fultz to Philly for Tatum (as it worked out), I can't stop chuckling. Minus that, Philly would be in the conference finals and I wouldn't even be watching. Kudos to Smart and Baynes. Hope Terry finds his shot and Larkin makes it back for the next round, because I think there will be one, though it may take 7 games. Hawk

worcester wrote:Boston's MAGNIFICENT SEVEN





Marcus Smart assumes Charles Bronson's role of Bernardo O'Reilly.

Jayson Tatum is Steve McQueen's Vin Tanner.

Al Horford is Yul Brynner's Chris Adams

Marc Morris is Robert Vaughn's dapper on the run gunman Lee.

Jaylen Brown is James Coburn's Britt.

Terry Rozier is Horst Buchholz's Chico.

Aron Baynes is Brad Dexter's Harry Luck.

........................................

And LeBron is Eli Wallach's Calvera!

worcester,

As long as we're not going for authenticity by matching up skin colors, why not go for the 1954 original by legendary film director Akira Kurosawa?

The Seven Samurai

Takashi Shimura's character Kambei Shimada, a ronin and the leader, is Al Horford.
Yoshio Inaba's character Gorobei Katayama, a skilled archer who is the strategist behind the village's defense, is Marcus Smart
Daisuke Kato's character Shichiroji, Kambei's old friend and former lieutenant, is Jaylen
Seiji Miyaguchi's character Kyuzo, a supremely skilled swordsman, is Terry Rozier
Minoru Chiaki's character Heihachi Hayashida is less skilled but amusing and charming.  He's Aron Baynes
Isao Kimura's character Katsushiro Okamoto is a young and untested warrior.  He's Jayson Tatum.
Toshiro Mifume's character Kikuchiyo is mercurial and tempermental.  Marcus "Mercury" Morris, of course.

Ok, so they don't match up exactly, but MOVIES ARE MAGIC!




bob


.

Hi,
Our defense was good. Cavs could muster only 74 FGA. We shot only 36.5%.
Lebron did look gassed despite some of the announcers trying to convince ESPN audience of otherwise.
I wonder if it's 40+ MPG at the age of 33 in the last 16 games or relentless Morris, Smart, Brown and Tatum or a combination of the above?
In any case, I hope Celtics will finish him and his entourage on Fri.

AK

Lebron is getting worn out, he didn’t look like the great player he has always been that 2nd half, law of the jungle, we have so many young bodies to throw at him and the real key to the victory was how fast Rozier would not switch onto or switch off of Lebron and let a bigger player stay on him. Kudos to BS for making that adjustment, if we would have done that in last game, series might be over. Love that Jayson Tatum could carry us, even with Brown and Rozier having very off games. The good thing was it didn’t effect our defense, as that was what the game for us.

The Cavaliers got by for years playing checkers.

But they lost the first two games of this series to a chess playing Britt.

They lost game 5 because they tried to bring a chess board to a Go tournament.

Talent/Team wise this series isn't close. The Celtics are the better team. I suspect that the C's road woes will end tomorrow night.

This is the first game that made me think that Tatum might end up a better player than Brown. Either way the Celtics win and the NBA does too. These guys are emerging as the best duo in the NBA. Want proof? Read those comments from the other side.

I've become a big fan of the show Highly Questionable. I still can't stand Dan Leotard but I love his Papi. He has me laughing throughout the program. It won't take long before that picture of LeBron is punctuated by the sound of someone gasping for air as his hands tighten around his neck. Mebbe it's my love of Espanglish.

Speaking of sports common taters. How you feeling today Jalen? Keep up the good work.

17goingon18 sooner rather than later please

Tatum was getting few calls when he drove to the hoop.  Suppose the refs let it go but when Bron is just brushed there’s a call more times than not. And if there isn’t he looks at the ref, palms up waiting to be bailed out.  

If we got the calls like him and finished at the hoop a little better we’d have won by 30.

beat

The three stooges (Jackson, Van G and ???) on ESPN were talking about Tatum during the game. One of them said that if the draft was to be done over, we might not have gotten him at the 3rd pick.  He was sure to go #1 or #2 at the latest.

Ignore reality much?   There was not too much thinking going on in that conversation.  Many on this board could have told them that we did have the #1 pick and traded down for the #3.  Danny was convinced by Josh Jackson and his agent's actions with the cancelled meeting that he would go #2 by the Suns.

Hi,
I know how Celtics can win game 6. Simple, easy.
Based on this Cavs didn't use Korver much because Semi wasn't playing. So, we sit Morris and they will stop using Lebron.
This is it!

AK

sinus007 wrote:Hi,
I know how Celtics can win game 6. Simple, easy.
Based on this Cavs didn't use Korver much because Semi wasn't playing. So, we sit Morris and they will stop using Lebron.
This is it!

AK

That's a lue-lue!

We shoot 36.5% for the game and win by 13, in a big, momentum-defining conference final game.  How?  Well, for one thing we loved the ball.  Only 8 TOs vs their 15.  Also, we had 10 steals vs only 3 for them.  We didn't play particularly well but we did play with energy and aggression and that energy and aggression earned us an additional 11fgas.  Even at 36.5% that's 4 more points.  They also shot an anemic 62% from the line.  We can't take credit for that, but we can take credit for only putting them on the line for 21 ftas vs our 23 ftas.

Tatum's numbers would have been even better if he hadn't blown a few bunnies.  Still, going hammer-and-tong with LeBron is pretty impressive.  Going hammer-and-tong with LeBron when you're a rookie?  Wow.  On the other side of the ball he had 4 steals and 2 blocks.    Talk about not shrinking from the moment.  One of the things I look at is "who ups their game in the playoffs?".  Not too much doubt about this kid, is there?  He's rookie Paul Pierce 2.0, except with a better supporting cast (and the fact that Pierce didn't play in his first playoffs until he was 24 years old and had been in the league 4 years).


Adam Himmelsbach @AdamHimmelsbach
yesterday
Tatum: "I just enjoy playing in the big moments in the big games. I think that’s when I have the most fun, when things are on the line."




Along the same line of "Who ups their game in the playoffs?"

Sean Grande @SeanGrandePBP
about 8 hours ago
Not his best game tonight by any stretch, but these Terry Rozier numbers are just ridiculous. TERRY ROZIER - PLAYOFFS - 4TH QUARTER/OT 48% from the floor 43% from 3 145 minutes 23 assists 1 turnover 1 turnover...in 145 late-game playoff minutes...at point guard.

Not sure I've ever seen a player whose shots get blocked as often as he blocks others like Baynes.  He was great last night, really held his ground on the baseline, but how many times did he get blocked by Kevin Love?

What's amazing is that we won by 13 points and Terry Rozier was a Smart-ian 3-15.  What adds to that strangeness was Smart being a Rozier-like 5-9 and 3-6 from 3.

Interestingly, Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance aren't anywhere near as good on the Cavaliers as they were on the Lakers.  Fortunately.  I thought they were going to be a valuable addition to them, along with Rodney Hood.  The 3 of them played a combined 35 minutes for 15 points, 8 rebounds.  Luecifer is going with the veterans that brung'em and doesn't trust the young'uns.  Once again, fortunately.


Jared Weiss @JaredWeissNBA
yesterday
If this series goes 7, Jayson Tatum would need to average 20 points per game to set the new rookie playoff scoring record.

And if it doesn't go 7 it's because we win on Friday in Cleveland, and then Tatum will get another 4 games, minimum, to set the new record.


Jay King‏
Verified account
@ByJayKing
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Ty Lue said the Celtics “threw (the Cavs) for a loop” by declining to play Ojeleye. That’s why Korver didn’t play as many minutes. That was his matchup.

8:15 PM - 23 May 2018

If Brad figured this is what would happen, or figured it out mid-game, then he really and truly is a genius.

Jaylen with a 4-15 night and numerous poor decisions.  Still love him, but neither he nor TRo had good games last night.

Jared Weiss @JaredWeissNBA
yesterday
Jaylen Brown: “The crowd is the best sixth man in the league.”

11 down, 5 to go.

http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=401032844








bob


.

More coverage.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/sports/wp/2018/05/23/nba-playoffs-cleveland-cavaliers-boston-celtics-game-5/?utm_term=.aacc4c3b51e5

https://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2018/05/cavaliers_celtics_eastern_conf_5.html#incart_big-photo

https://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2018/05/cleveland_cavaliers_have_their.html#incart_big-photo

So happy to watch this run. Glorious.