Jayson Tatum and the Celtics bounce back in competitive Game 3 win: 8 takeaways

The Celtics needed a big game from their stars on Saturday, and they got one to regain a 2-1 series lead with a 106-93 Game 3 win over the Cavaliers.

Here are the points to remember.

1. At the very least, Saturday served as a reminder that the playoffs are hard.

The Celtics led by 23 points in the third quarter. The Cavaliers rode that lead, but they never got closer than nine or ten the rest of the way.

And yet, the Celtics seemed out of breath after a very physical game as time expired in the fourth. Saturday’s victory was not comfortable. Donovan Mitchell gives the Celtics all they can handle. The disappearance of Kristaps Porzingis is a big deal.

The Celtics can still beat the Cavaliers in five games – Monday’s game suddenly seems like a crucial contest, to borrow one of the most overused sports expressions from Game-4. With a win, the Celtics would have a chance to close out the Cavaliers in Game 5 at home.

But the Cavaliers, as Mazzulla has repeatedly pointed out, are a good team. It won’t be easy.

2. Jayson Tatum scored 33 points on 11-of-25 shooting. He still hasn’t been able to find range from behind the arc (2-for-8 after making his first two consecutive games), but he has made some spectacular plays, including a nice lob to Luke Kornet in transition as well as a perfect iso photo-jumper on Max Strus at the end of the fourth.

Tatum took a lot of heat after the Celtics’ Game 2 loss, but he and Brown responded to the avalanche of criticism with complete all-around performances. Tatum added 13 rebounds and six assists on Saturday, while Brown scored a hyper-efficient 28 points on 13-of-17 shooting to go with nine rebounds and three assists.

“I respect your work,” Tatum told reporters after Saturday’s game. “I respect the guys on TV. I don’t always agree with what they say. When they’re fair and they take all the emotion out of it, whichever way they lean, and they’re fair, I respect that. I understand what the media has brought to our game, more eyes and more attention, and how everyone has benefited.

“So I wouldn’t say I take that as a lack of respect, would I?” Like I said, I don’t always agree with what they say. Maybe I feel like they don’t watch everything I do, but it’s not my place to focus on that or pay any attention to it. My job is to be the best player I can be for our team every night.

3. Tatum and Brown also praised their leadership after the game. Al Horford said NBC Sports Boston Abby Chin then said Tatum challenged the team at halftime, and they responded with a 14-0 run that pushed the lead into the 20 seconds.

“I just challenged everyone,” Tatum said. “Myself, the starters, we have tended in the past to relax after half-time. We usually win by getting out early.

“So I just challenged the group: ‘Can we come out like our backs are against the wall?’ Can we have them called on the first outing? Can we continue as if we had lost nine points? » We responded and we started the third quarter very well.

The Celtics also responded to Brown’s comments calling the team’s defense “unacceptable” after Game 2. The Celtics allowed just 105.7 points per 100 possessions (21st percentile), and they held the Cavaliers to fewer than 24 points in each of the final three quarters.

Brown received postgame praise from Jrue Holiday for being “the leader that he is” and for “expressing his feelings and just bringing his knowledge to the game.”

“We watched the film, we held each other accountable, we just talked to everyone about life and set the tone from top to bottom,” Brown said. “Just holding myself accountable, making sure my defense is good, and I think everyone else has followed suit.”

4. Holiday also had a big game – 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting, with eight rebounds and five assists. He later noted that part of the reason he was aggressive was in an attempt to wear down Donovan Mitchell.

“We know Donovan is going to be aggressive on one side of the ball, but we can run him on the other side if he guards me,” Holiday said. “There are a lot of times where I could defer or do something else, and I just thought maybe attacking him might wear him down even more in the third or fourth quarter.”

To that end, Mitchell scored 10 points (4 of 10) in the second half after posting 23 points (8 of 12) in the first half. The holidays might be on to something.

“I felt like he was a little gassed. It’s tough, what he’s doing,” Holiday said.

5. Holiday is right: Mitchell — who scored 33 points on 12-of-22 shooting — finished 7 of 12 from behind the arc, and all seven were step-back 3-pointers. Six came in the first half.

On several occasions, Mitchell went against Horford or Sam Hauser. On one possession, the Cavaliers set up the defensive assignments of Horford and Hauser in a Horns set and gave Mitchell a choice of which player he wanted to attack (he chose Horford).

Mitchell is truly impressive. plotting against him sounds like a nightmare.

6. Horford shot just 1 of 7 and looked tired at times Saturday. Could Xavier Tillman give him some more rest while the Celtics wait for Kristaps Porzingis to return?

7. Payton Pritchard had a relatively quiet stat line (five points, three rebounds and three assists), but he made two plays of outsized importance.

The first was a defensive stop against Mitchell late in the third quarter. As time expired, Pritchard matched Mitchell’s explosive, jerky footwork and contested his shot enough to help force a miss and maintain a 15-point lead heading into the fourth.

The second was this courageous 3-pointer right in front of the Cavs half-court logo.

The Cavaliers had the lead at nine, and they had two chances to cut it further, but missed both chances. Pritchard’s triple — which the NBA officially listed as 33 feet — cut the lead to 12.

8. Game 4 will take place in Cleveland on Monday at 7 p.m.

“Anything can happen, especially if you come out flat,” Brown said. “We need to do a better job of this. We can’t think that this series will turn out like the last one. We need to come out and have the same defensive effort going into Game 4, and that’s just the urgency we need.