BOSTON -- No Kyrie Irving. No Al Horford.
No problem for the Boston Celtics who reminded us why they’re one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference with a 123-103 win over Cleveland.
Boston (30-18) has now won five in a row while extending their TD Garden winning streak to 10 in a row.
Terry Rozier, who fills in for Irving (flu-like symptoms) whenever Irving isn’t around, set the tone with Boston’s first eight points and finished with a game-high 26 points on 9-for-13 shooting.
And there was Aron Baynes who was filling in for Al Horford (rest).
Baynes didn’t do much scoring (he had two points) but made his presence felt with his defense and rebounding (he hauled in a team-high eight boards).
☘️CELTICS 125, CAVALIERS 103
But this win was one in which several Celtics contributed, the kind of collective effort they will need on Saturday when they take on the two-time defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
Boston Celtics
However, before they could think about Golden State, the Celtics had to take care of the Cavs, a team they beat by 33 points earlier this season.
Tonight’s game wasn’t nearly as dominant a showing, but after a lackluster start the Celtics took control about midway through the second and never looked back.
Here are the Stars, Studs and Duds from Boston’s 20-point win over Cleveland.
STARS
Terry Rozier: He did exactly what you’re supposed to do in the NBA when you’re a backup who gets a rare opportunity to start. Rozier had 22 points in the first half on 8-for-8 shooting, and finished with a game-high 26 points.
Cedi Osman: You have to respect the man’s perimeter shooting game, something the Celtics didn’t do as much as they should have. And when left open or lightly contested, he more often than not made Boston pay for it. He would end the night with 25 points while going 6-for-7 from 3-point range.
STUDS
Jayson Tatum: After a slow start shooting the ball, Jayson Tatum got it going in the second half at both ends of the floor before finishing with 15 points.
Ante Zizic: The lone player still with the Cavs as part of the Kyrie Irving trade, the former Celtic was a load for the Celtics bigs to deal with all game. For the night, Zizic had 19 points on 9-for-17 shooting from the field along with eight rebounds.
Jaylen Brown: It wasn’t so much the scoring as much as it was him being aggressive at getting to the rim and in doing so, he went to the free throw line often. He finished with 23 points which included him going 5-for-6 from the free throw line.
Gordon Hayward: This was one of the more efficient scoring nights for Gordon Hayward, who tallied 18 points on 6-for-10 shooting to go with five rebounds.
DUDS
Celtics' first quarter: Other than Terry Rozier, the Celtics didn’t really come out playing the kind of basketball needed to put the Cavs away quickly and because of that, Boston found itself playing from behind most of the quarter. Fortunately whatever malaise the Celtics opened the game with, didn’t last long. Expect a much better effort in the opening minutes of their next game, when they host the Warriors.
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