Game ID: 22400852
Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics
Friday, February 28, 2025 at 7:30 PM ET
TD Garden, Boston, MA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
BOS 38 36 24 18 116CLE 26 38 31 28 123
BOS vs CLE ScoutingBOS vs CLE Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
BOS availability going into 2/20 · 7 days' restOUT Brown missed 2 since 2/10, returns tonight: 27 min (78% of 35)
OUT Holiday missed 4 since 2/06, returns tonight: 20 min (64% of 31)
BACK Queta back 2/06 after 3, 11 min since (80% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 2/08 after 7, 6 min since (56% of 12)
NEW Porziņģis 27 to 33 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 2/23 · 2 days' restBACK Brown back 2/20 after 2, 27 min since (78% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 2/20 after 4, 20 min since (64% of 31)
BACK Queta back 2/06 after 3, 9 min since (71% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 2/08 after 7, 5 min since (43% of 12)
BOS availability going into 2/25 · 1 day's restBACK Brown back 2/20 after 2, 32 min since (92% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 2/20 after 4, 26 min since (83% of 31)
BACK Scheierman back 2/08 after 7, 5 min since (43% of 12)
NEW Porziņģis 27 to 32 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 2/26 · back-to-backBACK Brown back 2/20 after 2, 32 min since (93% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 2/20 after 4, 26 min since (83% of 31)
NEW Porziņģis 27 to 32 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 2/28 · 1 day's restOUT Kornet missed 2 since 2/25, returns tonight: 19 min (105% of 18)
BACK Brown back 2/20 after 2, 32 min since (93% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 2/20 after 4, 28 min since (89% of 31)
BOS availability going into 3/02 · 1 day's restBACK Brown back 2/20 after 2, 33 min since (95% of 35)
BACK Holiday back 2/20 after 4, 28 min since (89% of 31)
BACK Kornet back 2/28 after 2, 19 min since (105% of 18)
BOS availability going into 3/05 · 2 days' restOUT Holiday missed 2 since 2/28, out tonight
OUT Porziņģis missed 2 since 2/28, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 2 since 2/28, out tonight
BACK Kornet back 2/28 after 2, 25 min since (136% of 18)
BOS availability going into 3/06 · back-to-backOUT Holiday missed 3 since 2/28, out tonight
OUT Porziņģis missed 3 since 2/28, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 3 since 2/28, returns tonight: 30 min (257% of 12)
BACK Kornet back 2/28 after 2, 24 min since (132% of 18)
NEW Horford 28 to 34 min over the last 4
NEW Hauser 21 to 28 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 3/08 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 4 since 2/28, returns tonight: 35 min (112% of 31)
OUT Porziņģis missed 4 since 2/28, out tonight
BACK Kornet back 2/28 after 2, 26 min since (143% of 18)
BACK Scheierman back 3/06 after 3, 30 min since (257% of 12)
NEW Horford 28 to 34 min over the last 4
CLE availability going into 2/20 · 7 days' restOUT Wade missed 10 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 14 since 1/18, returns tonight: 17 min (91% of 18)
NEW Merrill 20 to 26 min over the last 4
CLE availability going into 2/21 · back-to-backOUT Wade missed 11 since 1/25, returns tonight: 15 min (72% of 20)
BACK Okoro back 2/20 after 14, 17 min since (91% of 18)
NEW Merrill 20 to 27 min over the last 4
CLE availability going into 2/23 · 1 day's restBACK Wade back 2/21 after 11, 15 min since (72% of 20)
BACK Okoro back 2/20 after 14, 18 min since (95% of 18)
CLE availability going into 2/25 · 1 day's restBACK Wade back 2/21 after 11, 16 min since (79% of 20)
BACK Okoro back 2/20 after 14, 18 min since (98% of 18)
CLE availability going into 2/28 · 2 days' restOUT Garland missed 2 since 2/23, returns tonight: 32 min (103% of 31)
BACK Wade back 2/21 after 11, 17 min since (84% of 20)
BACK Okoro back 2/20 after 14, 19 min since (105% of 18)
CLE availability going into 3/02 · 1 day's restBACK Garland back 2/28 after 2, 32 min since (103% of 31)
BACK Wade back 2/21 after 11, 18 min since (86% of 20)
BACK Okoro back 2/20 after 14, 18 min since (97% of 18)
CLE availability going into 3/04 · 1 day's restOUT Tomlin missed 2 since 2/28, out tonight
BACK Garland back 2/28 after 2, 35 min since (115% of 31)
BACK Wade back 2/21 after 11, 18 min since (89% of 20)
CLE availability going into 3/05 · back-to-backOUT Tomlin missed 3 since 2/28, out tonight
BACK Garland back 2/28 after 2, 34 min since (110% of 31)
CLE availability going into 3/07 · 1 day's restOUT Tomlin missed 4 since 2/28, out tonight
BACK Garland back 2/28 after 2, 33 min since (108% of 31)
NEW Jerome 20 to 25 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 106, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 14 free throws a game; Tatum at 24 and Brown at 23 a game. Without Kornet (2 straight). One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 103, shooting 51 percent and 38 from three, 23 free throws a game; Mitchell at 24 and Mobley at 19 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 14 a night. Without Garland (2 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Cleveland wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-14 a night and Boston plus-2 and the line, where Cleveland takes 23 free throws a game to Boston's 14. Call it Cleveland 115, Boston 112, Boston keeping it close.
2/20 @ PHI 124-104 — BOS notes
BOS won 124-104. BOS shot 48% (43 of 89) to PHI's 43%, 24 of 54 from three. Pritchard led with 28 (10 of 18, 8 of 15 from three); Brown added 20, Porziņģis 17. The hinge was Q3, 28-18: a lead of 16 became 26, and the lead reached 29. Horford was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
2/23 vs NYK 118-105 — BOS notes
BOS won 118-105. BOS shot 49% (45 of 91) to NYK's 43%, 17 of 44 from three. Tatum led with 25 (8 of 20, 3 of 10 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Brown added 24, White 19. The hinge was Q1, 38-19: from level to 19 ahead, and the lead reached 27. White was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
2/25 @ TOR 111-101 — BOS notes
BOS won 111-101. BOS shot 47% (44 of 93) to TOR's 51%, 15 of 51 from three, and got to the line 8 times to TOR's 16. Brown led with 24 (10 of 18, 0 of 5 from three); White added 22, Pritchard 20. The hinge was Q1, 35-24: from level to 11 ahead, and the lead reached 17. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
2/26 @ DET 97-117 — BOS notes
BOS lost 97-117. BOS shot 41% (33 of 80) to DET's 53%, 21 of 49 from three. BOS turned it over 17 times to DET's 12, and DET turned those into 13 steals. The glass went 32-51 against them. Tatum led with 27 (10 of 19, 4 of 9 from three); Pritchard added 18, White 18. Q2 was theirs, 35-26, the deficit cut from 9 to 0, but the other 3 periods went 91-62 against them. Porziņģis's -24 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/28 vs CLE 116-123 — BOS notes
BOS lost 116-123. BOS shot 48% (43 of 89) to CLE's 48%, 17 of 39 from three. Tatum led with 46 (19 of 37, 4 of 12 from three); Brown added 37, White 16. Q1 was theirs, 38-26, but the other 3 periods went 97-78 against them. They led by as many as 22. Pritchard's -36 in 25 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/02 vs DEN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 110, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 13 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and Brown at 26 a game. One day's rest. Denver comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 119, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 19 free throws a game; Murray at 24 and Jokić at 23 a game. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without Watson (12 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-9 a night and Boston minus-2 and the turnovers, Denver giving it away 17 times a game to Boston's 12. Call it Boston 117, Denver 114, Denver keeping it close.
3/05 vs POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 110, shooting 47 percent and 39 from three, 16 free throws a game; Brown at 27 and Tatum at 27 a game. Without Holiday (2 straight), Porziņģis (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Portland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 114, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 28 free throws a game; Simons at 24 and Sharpe at 22 a game. Without Grant (3 straight), Ayton (8 straight), Thybulle (62 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the line, where Portland takes 28 free throws a game to Boston's 16 and the glass, where Portland has been plus-4 a night and Boston minus-2. Call it Boston 115, Portland 112, Portland keeping it close.
3/06 vs PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 112, shooting 46 percent and 40 from three, 17 free throws a game; Tatum at 27 and Brown at 25 a game. Without Holiday (3 straight), Porziņģis (3 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Philadelphia comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 123, shooting 45 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Oubre Jr. at 22 and Grimes at 20 a game. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Okeke (10 straight), Lowry (9 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 112 a night to Philadelphia's 123 and the glass, where Boston has been minus-1 a night and Philadelphia minus-7. Call it Boston 117, Philadelphia 110.
3/08 vs LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 113, shooting 47 percent and 42 from three, 18 free throws a game; Tatum at 31 and Brown at 26 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Holiday (4 straight), Porziņģis (4 straight). One day's rest. The Lakers come in 5-0 over their last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 106, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 29 free throws a game; Dončić at 29 and James at 29 a game. That is 5 straight wins. They have won the glass by 5 a night. Without Hachimura (4 straight), Reddish (16 straight), Goodwin (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the line, where the Lakers take 29 free throws a game to Boston's 18 and the arc, Boston at 42 percent from three to the Lakers' 35. Call it Boston 113, the Lakers 112, the Lakers keeping it close.
2/20 @ BKN 110-97 — CLE notes
CLE won 110-97. CLE shot 43% (40 of 94) to BKN's 40%, 11 of 39 from three, and went to the line 27 times to BKN's 19 — 19 points from the stripe to their 11. Mitchell led with 26 (8 of 21, 3 of 9 from three, 7 of 10 at the line); Mobley added 18, Garland 18. The hinge was Q3, 35-27: CLE came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 6, and the lead reached 21. CLE trailed 48-50 at the half and won the second half 62-47. Merrill was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
2/21 vs NYK 142-105 — CLE notes
CLE won 142-105. CLE shot 61% (56 of 92) to NYK's 47%, 19 of 37 from three. The glass went 47-32 for them. Mitchell led with 27 (10 of 15, 5 of 7 from three); Mobley added 21, Jerome 19. The hinge was Q2, 36-21: a lead of 12 became 27, and the lead reached 42. Garland was the night's best plus/minus at +25.
2/23 vs MEM 129-123 — CLE notes
CLE won 129-123. CLE shot 46% (46 of 99) to MEM's 46%, 13 of 47 from three. The glass went 57-37 for them. Mitchell led with 33 (11 of 23, 4 of 8 from three, 7 of 11 at the line); Jerome added 26, Mobley 25. The hinge was Q1, 33-29: from level to 4 ahead. Strus was the night's best plus/minus at +11.
2/25 @ ORL 122-82 — CLE notes
CLE won 122-82. CLE shot 56% (45 of 80) to ORL's 37%, 19 of 32 from three. The glass went 47-35 for them. Jerome led with 20 (7 of 12, 4 of 6 from three); Mobley added 17, Hunter 17. The hinge was Q1, 34-16: from level to 18 ahead, and the lead reached 42. Okoro was the night's best plus/minus at +25.
2/28 @ BOS 123-116 — CLE notes
CLE won 123-116. CLE shot 48% (45 of 94) to BOS's 48%, 17 of 39 from three. Mitchell led with 41 (13 of 26, 5 of 12 from three, 10 of 11 at the line); Garland added 20, Mobley 17. The hinge was Q4, 28-18: CLE came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 7. CLE trailed 64-74 at the half and won the second half 59-42. Jerome was the night's best plus/minus at +34.
3/02 vs POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 105, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 22 free throws a game; Mitchell at 28 and Mobley at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 12 a night. One day's rest. Portland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 107, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 27 free throws a game; Sharpe at 21 and Simons at 18 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Ayton (6 straight), Thybulle (60 straight), Williams III (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-12 a night and Portland plus-1 and the turnovers, Portland giving it away 17 times a game to Cleveland's 13. Call it Cleveland 118, Portland 111.
3/04 @ CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Chicago comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 119, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 21 free throws a game; Giddey at 21 and White at 21 a game. Without Vučević (4 straight), Williams (6 straight). One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 130 a night and allowing 111, shooting 51 percent and 43 from three, 24 free throws a game; Mitchell at 28 and Mobley at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 10 a night. One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-10 a night and Chicago minus-2 and the arc, Cleveland at 43 percent from three to Chicago's 36. Call it Cleveland 121, Chicago 117, Chicago keeping it close.
3/05 vs MIA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 129 a night and allowing 113, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 28 free throws a game; Mitchell at 28 and Mobley at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. Miami comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 107, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 19 free throws a game; Herro at 20 and Adebayo at 20 a game. Without Wiggins (3 straight), Jović (5 straight), Jaquez Jr. (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-8 a night and Miami minus-0 and the line, where Cleveland takes 28 free throws a game to Miami's 19. Call it Cleveland 118, Miami 111.
3/07 @ CHA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Charlotte comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 100 a night and allowing 118, shooting 41 percent and 29 from three, 18 free throws a game; Ball at 24 and Bridges at 21 a game. That is 5 straight losses. Without Gra. Williams (45 straight), Simpson (3 straight), Okogie (16 straight). One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 110, shooting 48 percent and 42 from three, 25 free throws a game; Mitchell at 26 and Mobley at 18 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Cleveland at 42 percent from three to Charlotte's 29 and the turnovers, Charlotte giving it away 17 times a game to Cleveland's 10. Call it Cleveland 119, Charlotte 108, Cleveland by 11.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JT J. Tatum
LK L. Kornet
PP P. Pritchard
SH S. Hauser
CLEDG D. Garland
DH D. Hunter
DM D. Mitchell
DW D. Wade
EM E. Mobley
IO I. Okoro
JA J. Allen
MS M. Strus
SM S. Merrill
TJ T. Jerome
BOS/CLE the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Mitchell scores 41, Cavaliers overcome 22-point deficit to beat the Celtics 123-116
BOSTON -- — Donovan Mitchell scored 41 points, including 12 in the fourth quarter, to help the Cleveland Cavaliers rally from 22 points down and stun the Boston Celtics 123-116 on Friday night in the final regular-season meeting of the Eastern Conference’s top two teams.
Darius Garland added 20 points and seven assists. Evan Mobley finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds for his 27th double-double to give Cleveland a split in the four-game series with the playoffs just over two months away.
Jayson Tatum finished with 46 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists. Jaylen Brown added 37 points, marking the first time Boston’s top stars both posted 30-point games this season.
The Cavaliers had all of their players available, while the Celtics played without starters Jrue Holiday (finger) and Kristaps Porzingis (illness).
It did nothing to stymie the Celtics early as they sprinted out to a 25-3 lead. But after a cold start the Cavs responded, going on a 41-22 run to get back into the game.
Takeaways Cavaliers: The victory, even without the Celtics at full strength, is a huge mental boost for a Cavs team that was eliminated 4-1 by the Celtics in the second round of the playoffs last season.
Celtics: Boston is now just 18-11 at home.
Key moment Trailing 114-110, the Celtics got back-to-back stops, each followed by buckets by Brown to tie the game. Mitchell scored on a floater to put the Cavaliers back in front. Then, following a miss by Brown on Boston’s next possession, Mitchell hit a driving layup and was fouled. He completed the three-point play to put the Cavs in front 119-114 with 1:57 remaining.
Key stat Tatum had 30 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in the opening 24 minutes, the first player ever to reach those totals in a half during the play-by-play era (1997-98).
Up next Both teams play on Sunday. The Cavaliers host the Trail Blazers. The Celtics host the Nuggets.