Game ID: 22400710
Boston Celtics @ Cleveland Cavaliers
Tuesday, February 4, 2025 at 7:30 PM ET
Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Cleveland, OH
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
CLE 15 29 31 30 105BOS 28 26 33 25 112
BOS @ CLE ScoutingBOS @ 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.
CLE availability going into 1/27 · 1 day's restOUT LeVert missed 4 since 1/20, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 5 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 1/25 after 4, 29 min since (94% of 31)
CLE availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's restOUT LeVert missed 5 since 1/20, out tonight
OUT Wade missed 2 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 6 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 1/25 after 4, 28 min since (93% of 31)
CLE availability going into 1/30 · back-to-backOUT LeVert missed 6 since 1/20, out tonight
OUT Wade missed 3 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 7 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 1/25 after 4, 29 min since (96% of 31)
NEW Jerome 20 to 26 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 2/02 · 2 days' restOUT LeVert missed 7 since 1/20, returns tonight: 23 min (98% of 24)
OUT Wade missed 4 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 8 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 1/25 after 4, 29 min since (94% of 31)
NEW Jerome 20 to 26 min over the last 5
CLE availability going into 2/04 · 1 day's restOUT Wade missed 5 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 9 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK Mobley back 1/25 after 4, 28 min since (91% of 31)
BACK LeVert back 2/02 after 7, 23 min since (98% of 24)
CLE availability going into 2/05 · back-to-backOUT Wade missed 6 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 10 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK LeVert back 2/02 after 7, 20 min since (84% of 24)
CLE availability going into 2/07 · 1 day's restOUT Wade missed 7 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 11 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK LeVert back 2/02 after 7, 20 min since (85% of 24)
CLE availability going into 2/10 · 2 days' restOUT Wade missed 8 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 12 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK LeVert back 2/02 after 7, 20 min since (85% of 24)
CLE availability going into 2/12 · 1 day's restOUT Wade missed 9 since 1/25, out tonight
OUT Okoro missed 13 since 1/18, out tonight
BACK LeVert back 2/02 after 7, 20 min since (85% of 24)
NEW Merrill 20 to 26 min over the last 4
BOS availability going into 1/27 · 1 day's rest
full strength
BOS availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 2 since 1/25, out tonight
BOS availability going into 1/31 · 1 day's restOUT Horford missed 2 since 1/27, returns tonight: 26 min (90% of 28)
OUT Hauser missed 2 since 1/27, returns tonight: 14 min (69% of 21)
OUT Scheierman missed 3 since 1/25, out tonight
BOS availability going into 2/02 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 4 since 1/25, out tonight
BACK Horford back 1/31 after 2, 26 min since (90% of 28)
BACK Hauser back 1/31 after 2, 14 min since (69% of 21)
BOS availability going into 2/04 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 2 since 1/31, out tonight
OUT Scheierman missed 5 since 1/25, out tonight
BACK Horford back 1/31 after 2, 18 min since (65% of 28)
BACK Hauser back 1/31 after 2, 19 min since (92% of 21)
BOS availability going into 2/06 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 3 since 1/31, returns tonight: 10 min (72% of 13)
OUT Scheierman missed 6 since 1/25, out tonight
BACK Horford back 1/31 after 2, 21 min since (75% of 28)
BACK Hauser back 1/31 after 2, 17 min since (82% of 21)
BOS availability going into 2/08 · 1 day's restOUT Scheierman missed 7 since 1/25, returns tonight: 4 min (39% of 12)
BACK Horford back 1/31 after 2, 21 min since (74% of 28)
BACK Hauser back 1/31 after 2, 18 min since (86% of 21)
BACK Queta back 2/06 after 3, 10 min since (72% of 13)
BOS availability going into 2/10 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 2 since 2/06, out tonight
BACK Horford back 1/31 after 2, 23 min since (82% of 28)
BACK Hauser back 1/31 after 2, 18 min since (86% of 21)
BACK Queta back 2/06 after 3, 18 min since (135% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 2/08 after 7, 4 min since (39% of 12)
BOS availability going into 2/12 · 1 day's restOUT Holiday missed 3 since 2/06, out tonight
BACK Queta back 2/06 after 3, 14 min since (105% of 13)
BACK Scheierman back 2/08 after 7, 7 min since (63% of 12)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 130 a night and allowing 110, shooting 53 percent and 39 from three, 18 free throws a game; Garland at 26 and Mitchell at 25 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without Wade (5 straight), Okoro (9 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 109, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brown at 25 and Tatum at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-7 a night and Boston minus-4. Call it Cleveland 119, Boston 113.
1/27 vs DET 110-91 — CLE notes
CLE won 110-91. CLE shot 44% (40 of 91) to DET's 39%, 12 of 44 from three, and went to the line 23 times to DET's 11 — 18 points from the stripe to their 7. Garland led with 22 (8 of 19, 3 of 11 from three); Mitchell added 21, Allen 15. The hinge was Q2, 29-22: a lead of 3 became 10, and the lead reached 22. Strus was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
1/29 @ MIA 126-106 — CLE notes
CLE won 126-106. CLE shot 54% (54 of 100) to MIA's 47%, 13 of 42 from three, and got to the line 6 times to MIA's 15. CLE turned it over 7 times to MIA's 12. The glass went 47-35 for them. Mitchell led with 34 (14 of 23, 5 of 11 from three); Mobley added 22, Jerome 20. The hinge was Q1, 31-21: from level to 10 ahead, and the lead reached 22. Allen was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
1/30 vs ATL 137-115 — CLE notes
CLE won 137-115. CLE shot 58% (53 of 91) to ATL's 46%, 13 of 39 from three, and got to the line 20 times to ATL's 27. The glass went 49-36 for them. Garland led with 26 (11 of 20, 2 of 6 from three); Mitchell added 24, Jerome 20. The hinge was Q3, 39-21: a lead of 8 became 26, and the lead reached 29. Niang was the night's best plus/minus at +25.
2/02 vs DAL 144-101 — CLE notes
CLE won 144-101. CLE shot 57% (53 of 93) to DAL's 39%, 26 of 45 from three. Merrill led with 27 (9 of 14, 9 of 13 from three); Mobley added 22, Garland 17. The hinge was Q1, 50-19: from level to 31 ahead, and the lead reached 53. Mobley was the night's best plus/minus at +47.
2/04 vs BOS 105-112 — CLE notes
CLE lost 105-112. CLE shot 40% (36 of 91) to BOS's 41%, 11 of 39 from three, and went to the line 26 times to BOS's 18 — 22 points from the stripe to their 15. Mitchell led with 31 (12 of 25, 4 of 14 from three); Garland added 25, Allen 17. Q4 was theirs, 30-25, the deficit cut from 12 to 7, but the other 3 periods went 87-75 against them. LeVert's -23 in 17 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/05 @ DET — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 119, shooting 48 percent and 31 from three, 21 free throws a game; Cunningham at 29 and Beasley at 17 a game. One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 105, shooting 51 percent and 36 from three, 18 free throws a game; Mitchell at 24 and Garland at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Without Wade (6 straight), Okoro (10 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Cleveland wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Cleveland allowing 105 a night to Detroit's 119 and the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-7 a night and Detroit plus-0. Call it Cleveland 117, Detroit 114, Detroit keeping it close.
2/07 @ WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Washington comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 112, shooting 43 percent and 33 from three, 23 free throws a game; Kuzma at 21 and Kispert at 14 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Sarr (5 straight). One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 110, shooting 52 percent and 39 from three, 18 free throws a game; Mitchell at 25 and Garland at 23 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Wade (7 straight), Okoro (11 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Cleveland at 39 percent from three to Washington's 33 and the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-6 a night and Washington plus-1. Call it Cleveland 119, Washington 110.
2/10 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 128 a night and allowing 113, shooting 51 percent and 41 from three, 22 free throws a game; Mitchell at 25 and Garland at 23 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Wade (8 straight), Okoro (12 straight). 2 days' rest. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 108, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 23 free throws a game; Edwards at 37 and McDaniels at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Randle (5 straight), DiVincenzo (13 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the arc, Cleveland at 41 percent from three to Minnesota's 36. Call it Cleveland 118, Minnesota 112.
2/12 @ TOR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Toronto comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 105 a night and allowing 115, shooting 43 percent and 33 from three, 19 free throws a game; Barnes at 21 and Quickley at 14 a game. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. Without Barrett (5 straight), Poeltl (4 straight), Lawson (11 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Cleveland comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 126 a night and allowing 112, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 22 free throws a game; Mitchell at 25 and Mobley at 23 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Wade (9 straight), Okoro (13 straight). One day's rest.
So: Cleveland wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Cleveland has been plus-4 a night and Toronto minus-9 and the arc, Cleveland at 42 percent from three to Toronto's 33. Call it Cleveland 120, Toronto 110, Cleveland by 10.
1/27 vs HOU 112-114 — BOS notes
BOS lost 112-114. BOS shot 49% (39 of 80) to HOU's 45%, 15 of 39 from three. BOS turned it over 14 times to HOU's 7. Brown led with 28 (10 of 23, 3 of 9 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Tatum added 19, Kornet 18. Q3 was theirs, 37-31, turning a 2-point deficit into a 4-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 83-75 against them. They led by as many as 12. Brown's -12 in 38 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/29 vs CHI 122-100 — BOS notes
BOS won 122-100. BOS shot 47% (41 of 87) to CHI's 40%, 18 of 44 from three, and went to the line 27 times to CHI's 12 — 22 points from the stripe to their 11. BOS turned it over 8 times to CHI's 14. Porziņģis led with 34 (10 of 18, 8 of 14 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Brown added 28, White 22. The hinge was Q2, 41-28: a lead of 3 became 16, and the lead reached 24. Brown was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
1/31 @ NOP 118-116 — BOS notes
BOS won 118-116. BOS shot 50% (42 of 84) to NOP's 49%, 16 of 41 from three, and went to the line 26 times to NOP's 19 — 18 points from the stripe to their 13. BOS turned it over 13 times to NOP's 18. The glass went 35-48 against them. Brown led with 28 (11 of 18, 3 of 6 from three); Tatum added 27, White 16. The hinge was Q2, 28-19: BOS came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 6. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +4.
2/02 @ PHI 118-110 — BOS notes
BOS won 118-110. BOS shot 50% (42 of 84) to PHI's 45%, 21 of 49 from three, and got to the line 16 times to PHI's 28. Tatum led with 35 (13 of 20, 5 of 8 from three); Brown added 21, Porziņģis 18. The hinge was Q4, 38-16: BOS came in trailing by 14 and left it ahead by 8. BOS trailed 44-61 at the half and won the second half 74-49. Hauser was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
2/04 @ CLE 112-105 — BOS notes
BOS won 112-105. BOS shot 41% (40 of 98) to CLE's 40%, 17 of 48 from three, and got to the line 18 times to CLE's 26. Tatum led with 22 (7 of 23, 3 of 11 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); White added 20, Porziņģis 19. The hinge was Q1, 28-15: from level to 13 ahead, and the lead reached 20. Pritchard was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
2/06 vs DAL — 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 116 a night and allowing 109, shooting 47 percent and 39 from three, 21 free throws a game; Brown at 24 and Tatum at 24 a game. That is 4 straight wins. One day's rest. Dallas comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 125, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Irving at 25 and Washington at 22 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Washington (2 straight), Lively II (11 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 109 a night to Dallas's 125 and the glass, where Dallas has been plus-5 a night and Boston minus-4. Call it Boston 119, Dallas 111.
2/08 @ NYK — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 116, shooting 50 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 27 and Towns at 20 a game. Without Anunoby (2 straight). 3 days' rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 112, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 20 free throws a game; Brown at 24 and Tatum at 23 a game. One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the arc, Boston at 40 percent from three to New York's 35. Call it New York 117, Boston 114, Boston keeping it close.
2/10 @ MIA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Miami comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 113, shooting 45 percent and 35 from three, 18 free throws a game; Adebayo at 22 and Herro at 20 a game. Without Burks (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 112, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 20 free throws a game; Tatum at 28 and Brown at 20 a game. Without Holiday (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Boston at 42 percent from three to Miami's 35 and the turnovers, Miami giving it away 15 times a game to Boston's 12. Call it Boston 114, Miami 111, Miami keeping it close.
2/12 vs SAS — 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 117 a night and allowing 106, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 16 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Brown at 18 a game. Without Holiday (3 straight). One day's rest. San Antonio comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 121, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 22 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 23 and Fox at 21 a game. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 106 a night to San Antonio's 121 and the glass, where Boston has been plus-4 a night and San Antonio minus-6. Call it Boston 119, San Antonio 110.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
CLECL C. LeVert
DG D. Garland
DM D. Mitchell
EM E. Mobley
GN G. Niang
JA J. Allen
MS M. Strus
SM S. Merrill
TJ T. Jerome
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JH J. Holiday
JT J. Tatum
KP K. Porziņģis
LK L. Kornet
PP P. Pritchard
PO Porzingis
SH S. Hauser
CLE/BOS 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
Jayson Tatum scores 22, Celtics hold off Cavaliers 112-105 in matchup of Eastern Conference's best
CLEVELAND -- — Jayson Tatum scored 22 points, Derrick White added 20 and the Boston Celtics showed their championship makeup down the stretch with a 112-105 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night in a matchup of the Eastern Conference's top teams.
The defending NBA titlists executed in the final minutes and held off the Cavs, who lost for just the fourth time in 28 home games.
Kristaps Porzingis added 19 points and Jaylen Brown 16 with nine rebounds as Boston won its fourth straight and improved to 2-1 against Cleveland this season.
Donovan Mitchell scored 31 points and Darius Garland 25 for the Cavs, who cut a 15-point deficit to four in the fourth quarter.
But the Celtics, who have won four straight, didn't buckle and responded in every crucial moment to put away the Cavs.
Jarrett Allen had 17 points and 18 rebounds for Cleveland.
Takeaways Celtics: Porzingis' presence makes Boston that much tougher to defend. The 7-foot-3 big man was injured and missed last year's playoff series against Cleveland. The Cavs continually got caught making bad switches while trying to guard Porzingis.
Cavaliers: All-Star Evan Mobley had a rough night. He finished with just 7 points on 3 of 14 shooting and failed to make a significant impact at either end. Mobley recently returned from a calf injury and doesn't seem to have his explisiveness back.
Key moment After the Cavs pulled within four late in the fourth, White hit a short jumper followed by back-to-back 3-pointers to give Boston a 107-97 lead with 2:41 left.
Key stat Cleveland started just 1 of 14 on 3-pointers and finished 11 of 39 (28%) behind the arc. They've made at least 10 3s in 55 straight games.
Up next On Thursday, the Celtics host Dallas, which just acquired Anthony Davis from the Lakers in a superstar swap for Luka Doncic . The Cavaliers are in Detroit on Wednesday.