A shorthanded, demoralized group of Celtics played a demoralized game and fell short against a nothing-to-lose Cavaliers team, 102-94.
Neither team looked good during Q1. But if you pit a bad but hungry team against a good but effectively broken one, the former will probably do better. If not for Jayson Tatum and some liveliness at the frame’s end by Payton Pritchard, Boston would’ve been down a lot more than 22-17. Q2 was even worse: Offense that started logy sunk into the mud, with Evan Fournier offering the Celtics’ only signs of shooting life.