The Cleveland Cavaliers overcame a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit to end the Boston Celtics’ 11-game winning streak with a 105-104 victory on Tuesday.
A week after coming back from 10 points down in the fourth quarter to defeat Dallas, Cleveland summoned another remarkable late show to upset Eastern Conference-leading Boston.
Boston looked poised for a 12th straight victory after a clinical display left them leading 93-71 early in the fourth quarter in Cleveland.
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But Dean Wade scored 20 points in the final quarter, draining a series of three points to bring Cleveland back into the contest.
Wade, who finished with 23 points, made the game-winning layup with 19 seconds left to give Cleveland the lead after Kristaps Porzingis’ free throw helped the Celtics take a 104-103 lead.
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Boston thought it was given a lifeline when Jayson Tatum appeared to be fouled while attempting a late shot.
But the call was overturned in Cleveland’s favor and time ran out to give the Cavaliers a victory that was all the more impressive given the absence of key starters Donovan Mitchell and Max Strus.
“It felt good, my teammates had confidence in me to make those shots,” Wade said afterward.
“Just having that belief in myself gave me confidence and motivated me, and luckily they went in,” added Wade, who was congratulated on the court by Cleveland native and star Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs, after the victory.
Wade finished with 23 points, including six of nine three-pointers, with eight rebounds.
Jarrett Allen had 21 points while Darius Garland and Isaac Okoro added 16 points each.
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Meanwhile, Boston was left wondering where it all went wrong after an extraordinary, late collapse.
“We went cold,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. “I thought we had some good possessions that we didn’t make the shot on. But thanks to them: Wade played very well and they played throughout the sequence. Tatum led Boston’s scorers with 26 points while Porzingis added 24 and Jaylen Brown 21.
The Celtics remain comfortably atop the Eastern Conference despite the loss with a 48-13 record. Milwaukee is second in the standings at 41-21 while Cleveland is third after improving to 40-21.
– DURANT SHINES IN THE WIN OF THE SUN –
The drama in Cleveland was rivaled by a thrilling battle in Denver later Tuesday, where the Phoenix Suns rallied from a 22-point third-quarter lead to defeat the Nuggets 117-107 in overtime.
Kevin Durant scored 35 points for Phoenix while Grayson Allen added 28, including eight three-pointers, to help the Suns get over the line.
But the Suns almost blew their chances of winning after a dismal fourth quarter that saw them shoot just five of 24 from the field.
Phoenix rediscovered its shooting touch in overtime, however, outscoring Denver 15-5 to close out the victory.
“We missed like 10 straight shots in the fourth quarter… but that’s the name of the game, you’ve got to stick with it,” Durant said afterward. “In overtime we were able to make stops, rebound and get easy shots.”
Jamal Murray led Denver’s scorers with 28 points while Nikola Jokic had 25 points, 16 rebounds and five assists.
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In Tuesday’s other games, Luka Doncic had a triple-double of 39 points with 10 rebounds and 11 assists, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Dallas Mavericks from losing 137-120 to the Indiana Pacers.
The Pacers spread the scoring in devastating fashion to overwhelm the Mavericks defense, with nine Indiana players reaching double figures.
In New York, the Philadelphia 76ers stumbled to a 112-107 loss to the Brooklyn Nets.
In Toronto, the New Orleans Pelicans delivered a humiliating 41-point beating to the Raptors, winning 139-98.
Trey Murphy led the Pelicans with 34 points on a night where no fewer than seven New Orleans players scored double figures.
“I’m extremely proud of this group, it’s a big step in the right direction,” said New Orleans head coach Willie Green.
The Pelicans improved to 37-25 to remain in fifth place in the West.
