The Cleveland Cavaliers found themselves without some key players yet again, but still managed to fight until the final whistle. They must have taken the team hashtag of #BeTheFight pretty seriously, because they nearly came away with a win against a superior Boston Celtics team Wednesday night. Boston was also without some key players of their own. Kemba Walker, Gordon Hayward, and Jaylen Brown all missed the contest. That did not stop them from handing the Cavaliers a 112-106 loss.
Cleveland was led by Collin Sexton, setting a new career-high in scoring for the second consecutive game. Sexton’s 41 points nearly carried the Cavs all the way back in this one, but Boston was just too much. Sexton’s impact was not limited to just scoring as he finished with 6 assists, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal. Sexton had to pick up the slack for his teammates who missed the contest (Tristan Thompson, Andre Drummond, and Darius Garland) and Kevin Porter Jr. leaving early on in the game with a head injury.
Kevin Love was the Cavs second-highest scorer with 26 points on 9-17 shooting (5-10 3PT). Love also grabbed 14 rebounds to finish with a double-double.
Larry Nance Jr. got the start and impressed yet again with a double-double of his own. Nance had 19 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals. When Nance has been given the opportunity to play significant minutes he has taken it and ran. Larry Nance Jr. frequently stuffs the stat sheet and is certainly making a case for more playing time moving forward.
