Saturday’s NBA playoff takeaways: Mavericks take series edge, Celtics bounce back strongly

Saturday’s NBA playoff takeaways: Mavericks take series edge, Celtics bounce back strongly

Brandon Knight

By Anthony Slater, Tim Cato, Jay King, Jared Weiss and Joe Vardon

The Boston Celtics bounced back from their embarrassing Game 2 loss to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers and take back a series lead Saturday, winning on the road 106-93.

The Cavs made a spirited fourth-quarter comeback attempt after trailing by double digits for most of the game, but Boston stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown — who combined for 61 points and 22 rebounds — responded to protect the victory.

The Celtics will look to continue their road success Monday.

In the Western Conference, the Dallas Mavericks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder for the second straight game to take a 2-1 series lead.

Mavs forward P.J. Washington continued his dominant play, scoring a team-high 27 points on 11-of-23 shooting with five 3-pointers in the 105-101 victory. Star guards Kyrie Irving and Luka Dončić each scored 22 points, with Irving dishing out seven assists and Dončić grabbing 15 rebounds.

Go off, @PJWashington 🔥 pic.twitter.com/aBui6CPWyr

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) May 11, 2024

For the Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the only player to score more than 16 points; his 31 were a game high, but so were his five turnovers.

Dallas outrebounded Oklahoma City thanks to 15 offensive boards.

Brandon Knight Celtics 106, Cavaliers 93

Series: Boston leads 2-1

Game 4: Monday in Cleveland

Boston’s defensive intensity returned

The Celtics had a chance to close the door on Cleveland after taking a 23-point lead early in the third quarter, but the Cavaliers wouldn’t go away. They chipped away at the deficit until pulling within 9 points early in the fourth quarter. With the Cleveland crowd going wild, it could have been trouble for Boston.

Out of a timeout, Tatum drove for a bucket. Moments later, Brown drove for another. The Cavaliers kept pace for a while but could never pull closer than 9 points the rest of the way. The Celtics had every answer down the stretch. Brown hit a one-legged runner. Tatum sank a fadeaway jumper. Boston’s offense delivered time after time.

The Celtics left Game 2 disappointed in their defense. They didn’t believe they showed playoff intensity during the loss. The theme from the players at shootaround Saturday morning was that, no matter what they did offensively, they needed to work a lot harder on the other end of the court. They did that. But they still needed to execute at the other e
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