BOSTON – When you think of Cleveland, it’s impossible not to immediately think about LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love.
But as the Celtics discovered on Friday night, the Cavaliers have the kind of depth that allows them to compete with anyone if one or all of their Big Three aren’t playing.
Boston’s bench has grown accustomed to overwhelming its fellow reserves.
But Friday’s game against Cleveland was not one of those games, with Boston’s bench scoring a total of 36 points compared to Cleveland’s backups tallying 35 points scored.
Cavs guard Mike Miller had 11 points, all coming within a six-minute stint in the third quarter that brought the Cavs from as many as 16 points down to taking a brief lead.
James Jones had nine points. Tristan Thompson had a game-high 12 rebounds in just 16 minutes of court time. Even former Celtic Kendrick Perkins did some good things, scoring four points on 2-for-4 shooting to go with three rebounds.
“I for sure saw how loaded they were, how deep they were,” said Evan Turner. “They’re loaded for sure. Mike Miller came in and hit some big shots. Joe Harris, (Matthew) Dellavedova. Also they got going along with a few whistles as well too. But they’re loaded for sure.”
Boston Celtics
Here are some other factors to consider heading into tonight’s rematch against the Cavaliers.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
The Celtics will look to get out to a fast start akin to Friday’s game at Cleveland. Boston opened the game with a 16-4 run. Still no official word on whether LeBron James will play. But if he does, his minutes are surely to be reduced considering the Cleveland hosts Detroit on Monday night.
KEY MATCHUPS
Tyler Zeller vs Timothy Mozgov
The two played to a near-standstill on Friday, with Zeller scoring 13 points to go with six rebounds and three assists and a steal. Mozgov was a major factor as well with 13 points and two rebounds.
KEY PLAYER
Marcus Smart
The way he came out firing from the field was huge for Boston in its 99-90 win at Cleveland on Friday night. Smart doesn’t have to make all his shots in the first quarter or shoot 7-for-10 from the field and score 19 points like he did against the Cavs in order to have a good game. But he does have to continue making himself a viable scoring option in order to keep opposing defenses honest.
BY THE NUMBERS
14: That would be the number of wins Boston has this season (compared to five losses) when limiting an opponent to less than 19 points scored in the first quarter. In Friday’s 99-90 win at Cleveland, the Celtics limited the Cavs to 17 points in the first quarter.