NBA

Boston Celtics at Cleveland Cavaliers

· National Basketball Association
16-4, 9-2 Away
Final
111 - 115

18-3, 11-1 Home

Mitchell scores 35, Cavs end Celtics' winning streak with 115-111 win in matchup of East's elite

Spida puts defender in spin cycle for tough Cavs bucket

Mitchell made all six field-goal attempts — including four 3-pointers — in the fourth as the Cavs overcame a 12-point deficit. The All-Star guard scored 30 points in the second half after going just 2 of 8 from the floor in the first.

Darius Garland added 22 points for Cleveland, which got some revenge on Boston after the defending NBA champions handed the Cavs their first loss on Nov. 19 following a 15-0 start.

Jayson Tatum scored 33 points and Payton Pritchard 24 for the Celtics, who led 93-81 in the fourth before Mitchell took over. Kristaps Porzingis added 21 points for Boston.

The Celtics played without two starters: Jaylen Brown (illness) and Derrick White (foot sprain).

Takeaways Celtics: Even short-handed, they pose so many problems with their offensive balance and arsenal of outside shooters.

Cavaliers: Mitchell showed why he's one of the league's best all-around players, shaking off a recent shooting slump (he went 5 of 23 in a loss to Atlanta on Friday) by making every big play down the stretch.

Key moment With Boston trailing 113-110 with 5 seconds left, Pritchard made his first free throw before intentionally missing his second while hoping for a long rebound. However, he got called for stepping into the lane too early, giving the ball back to Cleveland. Mitchell then put it away with two free throws.

Key stat Mitchell came in shooting just 40% (42 of 104) in his last five games.

Up Next Celtics host Miami on Monday to begin a stretch of four home games in six nights, and Cavaliers host Washington on Tuesday.

Regular Season Series

Series tied 1-1

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 111 - 115
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 111 - 115
4th 0.0 Jaden Springer offensive rebound 111 - 115
4th 0.0 Jrue Holiday misses 39-foot three point pullup jump shot 111 - 115
4th 4.1 Donovan Mitchell makes free throw 2 of 2 111 - 115

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/bos.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originBOS https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/cle.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originCLE
38-95 FG 39-80
40 Field Goal % 49
17-49 3PT 17-36
35 Three Point % 47
18-19 FT 20-25
95 Free Throw % 80
46 Rebounds 44
10 Offensive Rebounds 6
36 Defensive Rebounds 38
17 Assists 22
11 Steals 5
6 Blocks 7
8 Turnovers 17
3 Team Turnovers 1
11 Total Turnovers 18
0 Technical Fouls 0
0 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
14 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 18
3 Fast Break Points 7
24 Points in Paint 40
19 Fouls 20
14 Largest Lead 11
Cleveland Cavaliers Cleveland Cavaliers Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Larry Nance Jr., F Out Dec 21
Max Strus, G Out Dec 21
Evan Mobley, C Out Dec 13
Boston Celtics Boston Celtics Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Jordan Walsh, G Out Dec 22
Jayson Tatum, F Out Oct 9

Game Information

Rocket Arena

Location: Cleveland, OH
Attendance: 19,432 · Capacity:

2025-26 Atlantic Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
New York 20 8 .714 - W1
Boston 18 11 .621 2.5 W3
Philadelphia 16 11 .593 3.5 W2
Toronto 17 13 .567 4 L2
Brooklyn 8 19 .296 11.5 W1

2025-26 Central Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Detroit 22 6 .786 - W1
Cleveland 16 14 .533 7 W1
Chicago 13 15 .464 9 W3
Milwaukee 11 18 .379 11.5 L3
Indiana 6 23 .207 16.5 L5
Full Standings

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