It’s been a tale of halves for the Celtics lately. One 24-minute stretch has been significantly better than the other in the last two games.
The Cleveland Cavaliers took a while to heat up in TD Garden Feb. 28 where they found themselves in a 25-3 deficit against the Boston Celtics early in the first quarter. Boston was hot to begin, but at halftime its lead was only 10 points (74-64).
A 46-point near triple-double from Jayson Tatum (including 30 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in the opening half) and 37 points from Jaylen Brown was not enough to hold off Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell (41 points), and the Celtics ultimately lost 123-116. Star center Kristaps Porzingis (illness) and veteran Jrue Holiday (finger injury) both did not suit up for the game, and sharpshooter Sam Hauser (6 points, 6 rebounds) played 38 minutes as a starter.
Before we discuss the worries surrounding the team, let’s go back to the first night of the back-to-back games, where the Celtics took a tough loss to the Pistons Feb. 26 in Detroit, 117-97. The Celtics had excuses: It was their third game in four days, Jaylen Brown was absent with a thigh contusion injury and the Pistons were on a seven-game win streak…
But the Celtics had made it an even contest heading into halftime, going on a 27-12 run in the last seven minutes of the first half, hitting 11 of their 16 three-pointers in the second quarter and tying the game at 55. However, it seems the crew used up all of its luck in the first half and ultimately lost by a resounding 20 points.
Detroit was the team the Celtics had the longest active win streak against, beating it in 12 consecutive meetings dating back to Feb. 16, 2022. But the Pistons have been red hot lately, winning nine of their last 11 games. Star Cade Cunningham is averaging 29 points per game and 10.5 assists since returning from the All-Star break.
“Cade Cunningham reminds me of Grant Hill — a healthy Grant Hill,” sports analyst Kendrick Perkins and former Celtic said on ESPN’s “NBA Today” Feb. 27. “This man is a young superstar on the rise.”
Before Hill’s injury in 2000, he was a versatile player who could score and dish the ball to his teammates, all while grabbing rebounds due to his 6 foot 8 inch frame, similar to Cunningham’s style of play. Cunningham is emerging as the leader of this scrappy Pistons team who are mounting an impressive comeback after only winning 14 games last season and 31 games over the last two.
Mitchell, older but a superstar nonetheless, was integral in the Cavaliers’ win against Boston, shooting 13-26 from the field and adding five three-pointers. Mitchell has scored 30 or more points in all four meetings against the Celtics this season.
“We’ve done a lot of really good things this season. But I keep telling my guys, we haven’t done anything. All the hype, the 15-0, we haven’t done anything yet. [The Celtics], this is our measuring stick. We want to continue to get to where they’re at,” Mitchell said postgame after the win.
The Cavs tied the season series at two games each, but the real series everyone will be watching is their playoff matchup, as the two teams still sit atop the Eastern Conference. With the loss, the Celtics drop to an 18-11 record at home. Going up against the defending champions and knowing they have something to prove is allowing these teams to feed off of the crowd noise and atmosphere, fueling them to win. But the Cavaliers are contenders, and they’re seven and a half games ahead of the Celtics for first place in the conference.
It’s reasonable to be concerned for the Celtics, but with less than a month and a half to go in the regular season, the Celtics will most likely focus on securing the No. 2 seed in the conference unless the Cavaliers pull their foot off the gas soon.
For the Celtics: Don’t get cocky. Every team that faces them feels it’s the underdog, and it’s entering the matchup with an underdog mentality. And to the fans at TD Garden: We can always be louder.
