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NBA: Celtics beat Cavaliers in matchup of top teams in East

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Feb 5, 2025Basketball

Jayson Tatum scored 22 points, Derrick White added 20 and the Boston Celtics showed their championship makeup down the stretch with a 112-105 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night in a matchup of the Eastern Conference's top teams.

The defending NBA champions executed in the final minutes and held off the Cavs, who lost for just the fourth time in 28 home games.

Kristaps Porzingis added 19 points and Jaylen Brown 16 with nine rebounds as Boston won its fourth straight and improved to 2-1 against Cleveland this season.

Donovan Mitchell scored 31 points and Darius Garland 25 for the Cavs, who cut a 15-point deficit to four in the fourth quarter.

Cavaliers All-Star Evan Mobley had a rough night. He finished with just 7 points on 3-of-14 shooting and failed to make a significant impact at either end. Mobley recently returned from a calf injury and doesn't seem to have his explosiveness back.

After the Cavs pulled within four late in the fourth, White hit a short jumper followed by back-to-back 3-pointers to give Boston a 107-97 lead with 2:41 left.

Embiid shines in return to lift 76ers

Joel Embiid had 29 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in his first action in a month to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 118-116 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, who fell to 0-2 since trading star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Embiid recorded his first triple-double of an injury-plagued season in which he's appeared in just 14 games. A left knee injury sidelined the seven-time All-Star for the previous 15 games, and he wore a large brace on the knee.

But he looked like his usual self, especially down the stretch. Embiid’s layup with 22 seconds left put Philadelphia ahead by a point. He grabbed a rebound on the Mavericks’ next possession and then defended the final play of the game when Dallas turned it over.

Coach Nick Nurse said Embiid wasn't under any restrictions, and he played 36 minutes, going 12 of 23 from the field and 4 of 9 from the free-throw line.

Tyrese Maxey had 33 points and 13 assists as the Sixers won their fifth in seven games.

Kyrie Irving scored 34 points for the Mavs and Naji Marshall added 19.

Newly acquired Anthony Davis (abdominal injury) did not play but was courtside after Sunday’s trade that brought him to Dallas in exchange for Doncic. Max Christie, also part of the deal, scored 15 points.

Doncic watches Lakers rout Clippers

LeBron James had 26 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, and Luka Doncic watched approvingly from the bench while the Los Angeles Lakers thrashed the Los Angeles Clippers 122-97.

Doncic clapped and occasionally fist-pumped during the Lakers' outstanding performance in their first game since they made the seismic trade to acquire the All-NBA scoring champion in exchange for star big man Anthony Davis. James and Doncic, who is close to a return from a strained calf, sat next to each other and talked at times.

Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura scored 20 points apiece for the Lakers, who finished a six-game trip with five victories despite losing Davis to injury even before the trade. The Lakers' victory was their first at Intuit Dome, their crosstown rivals' sparkling new arena.

Norman Powell scored 20 points for the Clippers (28-22), who fell two games behind the fifth-place Lakers (29-19) in the West.

James Harden went 2 of 12 for seven points, and Kawhi Leonard scored just 11 before both stars took the fourth quarter off.

The Lakers scored 45 points in the first quarter - the most they've managed in any period this season – and didn’t commit a turnover until midway through the second quarter.