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Top-seeded Boston won the best-of-seven series
4-1 and will face either the Indiana Pacers or the New York
Knicks for the Eastern Conference title. Second-seeded New York
leads sixth-seeded Indiana 3-2 in a series that will continue
with Game 6 on Friday night in Indianapolis.
"It's a blessing, honestly, to be a part of winning," Boston's
Jaylen Brown said. "It's been a great journey so far, but we're
not done yet. We just have to keep going."
Al Horford had 22 points and 15 rebounds during the Wednesday
victory.
"(Horford) made shots, and he's a winner," Cleveland coach J.B.
Bickerstaff said. "I can't say enough about the way he played
tonight. Just watching him chase down loose balls and make
extra-effort plays. He understood the moment and has the ability
on both ends of the floor to impact winning at a high level with
little things -- knowing who he is. Understanding his role."
Jayson Tatum added 25 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists for
Boston. The Celtics led by three points early in the fourth
quarter but extended the gap to 101-87 on a Tatum 3-pointer with
6:45 to play. The Cavaliers didn't threaten after that.
The Celtics have a 7-0 record in the playoffs this season when
their opponent fails to score 100 points.
"I thought tonight the Cavs brought the best out of us,
especially in the second half," Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said.
"We showed what we can be when we really put our minds to it and
when we play at a different level.
"I thought Al was inspirational. And I thought they tested our
trust. They tested our trust in each other, they tested our
physicality, they tested our toughness and I thought the guys
responded."
It was a skeleton crew that took the court for Cleveland, which
played without guard Donovan Mitchell (calf strain), center
Jarrett Allen (bruised rib) and guard Caris LeVert (knee bone
bruise).
The calf injury also caused Mitchell to miss Cleveland's 109-102
loss in Game 4 on Monday night. Allen didn't play in the series,
and LeVert was coming off a 19-point performance in Game 4.
Evan Mobley had a game-high 33 points and seven rebounds for the
fourth-seeded Cavaliers. He made 15 of his 24 field-goal
attempts.
Cleveland received a season-high 25 points from Marcus Morris
Sr., who made 5 of 6 3-point attempts.
--Field Level Media [© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All rights
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