Cavs get back into series with wire-to-wire Game 3 victory over the Celtics

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Carlan Gay
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• 6 min read
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The Cleveland Cavaliers avoided the dreaded 3-0 series hole with a resurgence 116-86 Game 3 blowout win over the Boston Celtics Saturday night.

It was the sixth straight win at home in the playoffs for the Cavs, while Boston now moves to 1-5 on the road. 

LeBron James led the way for Cleveland with a game-high 27 points, 12 assists and five rebounds. Five other Cavs posted double-digits in scoring - George Hill and J.R. Smith bounced back from their poor performances in Boston with 13 and 11 points respectively.

Boston never led in the game and were down by as many as 30 points, they'll look to bounce back in a critical Game 4 on Monday.

Check out the stats and best highlights from Game 3 below...

Game 3 box score  |  Play-by-play

Final: Cavs 116, Celtics 86

11:02 p.m. ET — That's a wrap, wire-to-wire win for the Cavaliers. The Cavs "others" stepped up - they knocked down their threes (17-34) and we now have a series.

10:49 p.m. ET — Cavs still providing hightlight even in the blowout. Cedi to Larry for the flush!

10:28 p.m. ET —  Cavaliers pouring it on in the fourth period. That's 13 triples in the game - they had 14 total in the first two games in Boston. (Game 1: 4 -26 Game 2: 10-31)


End of three quarter: Cavs 87, Celtics 63

10:19 p.m. ET — Big games bring out the big time celebs.


10:10 p.m. ET — LeBron finding Tristan not once but twice....Cavs pounding the Celtics inside, 30 points in the paint for Cleveland.



10:04 p.m. ET — Kevin Love is coming alive now offensively. Beautiful lead pass to LeBron for the hammer. 


Halftime: Cavs 61, Celtics 41

9:48 p.m. ET — Halftime Leaders : Points - LeBron James 19 Jayson Tatum 13 Rebounds - Kevin Love 6 Al Horford 5 Assists - LeBron James 6 Marcus Smart 3

9:42 p.m. ET — LeBron rocks the party that rocks the body.

9:29 p.m. ET —  20 point lead for Cleveland. Cavs 8-for-13 from three...C's 2-for-8.

 

9:17 p.m. ET — Oh hi there Larry Nance Jr. - working the pick and roll nicely with Lebron in this second quarter. The supporting cast has brought it so far for Cleveland.

End of first quarter: Cavs 32, Celtics 17

9:10 p.m. ET — LeBron has 12 points, 2-for-2 from three point range and one mean block on Aron Baynes. Get it out of here Aron! 


8:59 p.m. ET — George Hill already has more points in this game (11) than he did in both Game 1 and 2 of the series combine (8).


8:59 p.m. ET  — Cavs already 5-for-7 from three point range. J.R. Smith and George Hill both have hit triples. Things can't be going any better for the Cavs right now.

8:45 p.m. ET —  First two Cavs baskets coming from George Hill and Tristan Thompson...good sign for the home team.

8:39 p.m. ET — Same starting lineup for both teams from Game 2. Tristan Thompson up front with Kevin Love. Can they impose their will on the offensive glass? Boston crushed the Cavs on the glass in Game 1, and hung tough in Game 2. Cavs need to take advantage of their ability to rebound.

8:33 p.m. ET —  This game could go a long way into how the NBA's off-season plays out. Some fans already in full pitch mode.

8:25 p.m. ET —  LeBron James leads the Cavs out in a must-win Game 3. The good news for Cavs fans is Cleveland is 5-1 at home in these playoffs. The only loss coming in Game 1 to the Indiana Pacers.


8:04 p.m. ET —  Al Horford is averaging 17.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game in the Eastern Conference Finals so far. He and Marcus Morris will be called upon to keep the young Celtics above water on the road.


 

Author(s)
Carlan Gay Photo
Carlan Gay

Carlan Gay is a deputy editor at The Sporting News.