Donovan Mitchell and Caris LeVert became the first Cleveland teammates to score 40-plus points in the same game since 2016, as their combined 82 points powered the visiting Cavaliers to a 132-123 win in overtime over the host Boston Celtics on Friday.
Mitchell shot 15-of-26 from the floor, including 5-of-9 from 3-point range, en route to his season-high 41 points. LeVert went 12-of-21 from the floor, 6-of-8 beyond the arc, and 11-of-12 from the free-throw line to match Mitchell’s 41. It was also a season high for LeVert.
LeVert scored 11 points consecutively in the final 2:33 of the extra frame to fuel Cleveland’s game-ending 11-2 run. The flourish sealed the Cavaliers’ fourth consecutive win since losing their opener on Oct. 19 at Toronto.
Boston, meanwhile, dropped its second consecutive decision after opening the season 3-0. The Celtics led by as many as 15 points late in the first half, pouring 75 on the Cavaliers by intermission.
Jayson Tatum shot 7-of-9 from the floor in the first half and went into the locker room with 24 points, but managed just eight points after the break — none in the third quarter and two in overtime.
He shot 0-of-3 from the floor in the fourth period, including missing the would-be game-winner at the end of regulation. Tatum finished with 32 points, matching Jaylen Brown for the team high.
Brown threw down a dunk on Mitchell and drew a foul call midway through overtime, but missed the free throw that would have given Boston a lead. LeVert took over from there.
LeVert and Mitchell’s hot shooting from 3-point range paced Cleveland to a 16-of-35 night from deep, outshooting Boston at 13-of-33. Marcus Smart, who scored 11 points, shot just 2-of-9 beyond the arc.
Cavaliers big men Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley each posted double-doubles. Mobley went for 19 points and 10 rebounds, and Allen added 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Kevin Love came off the bench for nine points and five rebounds for Cleveland.
Kyrie Irving and LeBron James were the previous Cavaliers teammates to each score at 40 points in one game, accomplishing the feat in the 2016 NBA Finals. They finished with 41 apiece in defeating the Golden State Warriors 112-97.
–Field Level Media