CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cavs believed the next time against the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics would be different.
They were right.
Cleveland avenged its November loss Sunday night, rallying from a double-digit second-half deficit and beating the short-handed Celtics, 115-111, in front of a raucous Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse crowd.
The win snapped the Cavs’ losing streak at two and allowed Cleveland, still without forwards Dean Wade (ankle) and Max Strus (ankle), to maintain the top spot in the Eastern Conference.
On Nov. 19 in Boston, after 15 consecutive victories to open the season, the Cavs suffered their first loss, with the Celtics ripping away a chance at NBA history. In the visitors locker room afterward, there were no long faces or slumped shoulders. Quite the opposite. The Cavs left Beantown with brimming with confidence — even after a crushing setback. They wanted a chance to learn from the loss and take those lessons into the next meeting.
That came Sunday night. In Cleveland.
They passed this test — thanks in large part to superstar Donovan Mitchell, who turned early murmurs into late-game MVP chants.
After an uncharacteristically poor start — a carryover from his dreadful shooting night in Atlanta — Mitchell erupted in the fourth quarter, leading the turnaround and causing the fans to roar with each belief-inducing jumper.
He scored 20 of his game-high 35 points in the fourth, outdueling fellow MVP candidate Jayson Tatum.
That individual flurry included 11 straight ear-splitting points that gave the Cavs their first lead of the second half at the 1:07 mark of the fourth quarter. They never gave it up, with this intense matchup of the two Eastern Conference elites turning into a figurative free-throw shooting contest in the final minute. The last 37 seconds, with repeated intentional fouls so the Celtics couldn’t get a chance at a game-tying 3, took about 17 minutes because of the numerous stoppages.
Mitchell made all six of his shot attempts in the fourth, including four clutch free throws to rebound from a chilly five-point opening quarter that included missing four of his first six attempts.
Backcourt mate Darius Garland, who struggled in the first meeting between the two teams, had 22 points and eight assists. Caris LeVert and Georges Niang each chipped in with 13 off the bench.
Boston, playing without two starters — Derrick White (foot sprain) and Jaylen Brown (illness) — were led by Tatum, who finished with 33 points on 12 of 27 shooting and 4 of 9 from 3-point range.
Payton Pritchard, the frontrunner for Sixth Man of the Year, contributed 24 off the bench. Kristaps Porzingis, unavailable a few weeks ago while recovering from offseason knee surgery, added 21 points and eight rebounds for the Celtics.
Coming off back-to-back losses to the Hawks, the Cavs opened the game with a burst, scoring the first nine points while the Celtics missed six shots in a row. But Boston quickly warmed up. The Celtics grabbed control and led by as many as 14 around the two-minute mark of the third quarter. They were up 12 going into the fourth.
It was Mitchell time.
He willed the Cavs to a come-from-behind win — and a bit of vengeance. For last May’s playoff ouster. For November’s streak-snapping setback. It’s what stars do.
Up next
The Cavs will host the Washington Wizards in their final NBA Cup game on Tuesday night. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.
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