The Boston Celtics couldn't quite close out the Utah Jazz in the fourth quarter on Tuesday night. The C's were up two entering the final frame but a 40-point outburst from the Jazz gave the NBA's best team a win over Boston.
Now, the C's will look to bounce back quickly on the latter half of a back-to-back. They'll get to do so against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland.
The Cavs (14-25) have gone cold and are on a four-game losing streak. Prior to that, they were on a four-game winning streak. Suffice to say, they are a bit of an up-and-down team. The C's will hope to keep them on the downswing, and to do that, they'll need to slow down Collin Sexton, who is leading the Cavs with 23.6 points per game.
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Meanwhile, Boston will be relying heavily on Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown with Kemba Walker (knee) sitting out the latter end of a back-to-back as the Celtics continue their load management plan with him. Last time Walker was out, Brown and Tatum combined to shoot 10-of-36 for 30 points against the Atlanta Hawks. Needless to say, they'll need to be better in this game to earn the C's a victory.
The C's will also be without big-man Tristan Thompson, as he remains in the NBA's health and safety protocols. That likely means more minutes for Daniel Theis and Robert Williams as a part of the Celtics' two-big rotation.
Also, it's worth noting that the Celtics scored a season-high 140 points against the Cavaliers earlier in the year, so they'll look to repeat their offensive success in this one.
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When: Tuesday, March 16 at 8 p.m. ET
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