Celtics blow another lead in loss to Cavs
Even after they blew a double-digit lead for a third time in four nights, less than 24 hours removed from an exhausting doubleovertime game, the shorthanded Celtics had the perfect opportunity to survive, and right their struggling ship in Cleveland.
Grant Williams — an 82.7% free-throw shooter — stepped to the line with 0.8 seconds left in a tie game with two shots to give the C’s a lead. When Donovan Mitchell stepped in front of him in an effort to ice him, Williams exuded confidence, appearing to mouth, “I’m gonna make both.”
But then Williams’ worst nightmare unfolded. He missed both free throws. Marcus Smart’s inspiring tip-in attempt fell off the rim, sending the game to overtime.
The Celtics couldn’t recover.
Down three starters — including Jayson Tatum — the depleted Celtics ran out of gas. They built another big lead behind a strong first half, led by as many as 15 and by double digits midway through the fourth quarter. But for a third consecutive game, they couldn’t close the deal. Their offense went cold, the Cavaliers earned some timely secondchance buckets down the stretch and Donovan Mitchell’s 40 points ultimately finished them in a brutal 118114 loss on Monday night.
Jaylen Brown had 32 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in 45 minutes — a night after he logged 47 minutes — and Malcolm Brogdon returned after missing two consecutive games to score 24 points to lead an inspired bench effort. But it was ultimately not enough — again — after their third overtime loss of the season against the Cavs.
After blowing a 28-point lead in Friday’s loss to the Nets and another second half, double-digit lead in Sunday’s loss to the Knicks, the Celtics still couldn’t learn their lesson. The C’s are continuing to slip at an inopportune time.
“It’s part of it,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla told reporters in Cleveland. “We did a lot of good things for a long time. Coming off the double overtime game, the second night of a back-toback, playing three-and-ahalf quarters really well, and then just not executing down the stretch. You have to go through those things.
“For me, in order to experience success, you have to have failures. I don’t like losing. I hate losing. But I understand it, and I know that you need to do it in order to get to where you want to get to.”
The Celtics built their double-digit lead behind an impressive offensive first half. They cooled down in the second half, but strong defense kept them ahead by 11 with 5:26 remaining before they collapsed again.
Their offensive execution waned under tired legs, which included eight consecutive missed shots. They lost the game on the glass, where Lamar Stevens came up with three of his six offensive rebounds in the final minutes, which led to seven second-chance points for Cleveland. Mitchell finally heated up and gave the Cavs a one-point lead — their first since the opening quarter — with 24.7 seconds to go.
“We haven’t learned about late-game offensive rebounding yet, and this might be the fifth or sixth loss, and so that part pisses me off,” Mazzulla said.
The Celtics looked like they might persevere when Derrick White’s ensuing 3-pointer took a friendly bounce to retake the lead. But Mitchell drew a questionable foul on Williams with 5.8 seconds left. The
C’s challenged, but it was unsuccessful and Mitchell made both free throws to tie the game. Then, without a timeout, Payton Pritchard went coast-to-coast and got a good look at a layup. It missed, but Williams was fouled on his tip-in attempt.
Williams — who has had a rough last week — missed two chances at redemption.
“Tell him I love him. It’s part of the game,” Mazzulla told reporters. “He didn’t miss them on purpose. Have to be able to move on from it.”
The Celtics took a threepoint lead in overtime but the Cavs responded with a 7-0 run, capped by a monster jam from Mitchell. Brown made it a two-point game on an impressive drive. But with 18 seconds left, after Mitchell missed a jumper, Darius Garland came down with another Cavs offensive board. He made two free throws to seal the game.
“We just have to pick up on some patterns that I think are holding us back a little bit and correct it, be better, be sharper, finish games better, keep leads better,” Brogdon told reporters. “I think that’s really going to be the big thing for us. Keeping leads.”
Mazzulla said after Sunday’s loss to the Knicks that he wasn’t concerned with the Celtics’ recent struggles — they’ve now lost four of their last five games and are two games behind the Bucks for first in the Eastern Conference — but some alarming trends are mounting. With 16 games now remaining before the playoffs, this feels like an important moment in the Celtics’ season as they address their issues and figure out how to apply their lessons to a championship run.
“You just have to, at times like this, shift your perspective,” Mazzulla said. “What are you going to focus on? …
“Who are we when we’re at our best? And why are we not at our best? And what does that look like, and how do we maintain that?”