Hot Cavs rally from 19 down in second half to beat Celtics
FILE – Darius Garland #10 of the Cleveland Cavaliers plays the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena on October 25, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. Matthew Stockman/Getty Images/AFP
Darius Garland scored 22 points and hit two free throws with 9.4 seconds left to give the Cleveland Cavaliers a 91-89 come-from-behind victory Saturday night over the visiting Boston Celtics.
Evan Mobley had 19 points, nine rebounds and three blocks as the Cavaliers won for the sixth time in seven games. Ricky Rubio came off the bench to tally 16 points and seven assists as the Cavaliers overcame a 19-point, second-half deficit.
🔥 @evanmobley comes up big in the @cavs 19-point comeback win.
19 points (12 in 4th quarter)
9 boards
3 blocks pic.twitter.com/7cE4nAppkI— NBA (@NBA) November 14, 2021
"LET 'EM KNOW!"
Darius Garland speaks on his team's defensive intensity, rookie Evan Mobley's aggressiveness and Ricky Rubio's leadership after the @cavs 19-point comeback win! 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/eRmjYZqDyn
— NBA (@NBA) November 14, 2021
Boston was bidding for its first three-game winning streak of the season and got 28 points from Dennis Schroder and 21 from Jayson Tatum. But the Celtics withered in the fourth quarter.
Leading late in the third quarter 74-56, the Celtics yielded a 21-2 run to the Cavaliers. Cedi Osman hit a pair of 3-pointers in the spree and Mobley added three buckets as Cleveland took the lead midway through the fourth quarter.
It remained tight the rest of the way, with neither team leading by more than two points. Cleveland took a lead with 35.9 seconds left when Rubio fed Jarrett Allen (11 points) for an alley-oop slam dunk, but Tatum answered with a jumper with 29.4 seconds to go.
Garland then drew a foul with a drive to the hoop and converted the two free throws. In the closing seconds, Schroder missed a rushed 13-foot jumper.
The Celtics were down early, but a 16-point run gave them the lead. Jabari Parker, Robert Williams III and Aaron Nesmith scored four points each during the spree, in which the Cavs failed to score during a 5:24 span as Boston grabbed a 22-9 lead early in the second quarter.
