Cavs blown out by Celtics in Game 1 of ECF; three takeaways

BOSTON– Not exactly the start you want to see in the conference finals.

The Cavaliers were blown out by the Boston Celtics in Game 1 at TD Garden, 108-83.

All afternoon, Boston out-hustled and out-shot the Cavs. Arguably the only positive takeaway from this game that the Cavs should build on is the 29-17 run they went on in the third quarter.

Other than that, it was pretty much a flurry of negatives from the opening tip, including the first play following it when Jaylen Brown got the ball and recorded an easy transition layup. During the first frame, the Celtics went on a 17-0 run to set the tone early, and never looked back.

Brown led the Celtics with 23 points and eight rebounds. Marcus Morris had a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Al Horford finished with 20 points and six assists. The Cavs were led by Kevin Love with 17 points and eight boards.

Here are three takeaways from the loss.

1. Easy looks in the paint and the from deep

For the game, the Celtics shot 51.2 percent (43-of-84) compared to 36 percent (31-of-86) for the Cavs, as they outperformed Cleveland in nearly every possible way.

Boston outscored Cleveland in the paint, 60-38, and from 3-point range, 33-12.

In the first quarter, as the Celtics got out to a quick 36-18 lead, all but three of their 14 made field goals came in the paint. Most were at point-blank range, so it’s no wonder the Celtics got out to a 14-of-22 shooting start.

That first quarter went on to set the tone for the rest of the game, as the Cavs’ interior defense was non-existent.

The disparity from behind the three-point line was just as dreadful. In the first half, the Cavs were 0-of-12 and didn’t hit their first 3-pointer of the game until the 8:47 mark in the third quarter on a Kyle Korver jumper.

Overall, the Celtics had great ball-movement, leading to looks pretty much wherever they wanted.

2. Off night for LeBron

LeBron James has, throughout his career, talked about using Game 1 of any playoff series as a “feel-out game.”

Let’s hope that’s all Sunday was.

James ended the game with just 15 points on 5-of-16 shooting from the field, and 0-of-5 shooting from deep. He had nine assists, but also seven turnovers, and pulled down seven boards.

James was the first player on the Cavs in double-figures, but didn’t get there until the 6:54 mark in the third quarter. He finished with a minus-32 for the game, tying the worst plus-minus of his playoff career (June 11, 2013 vs. San Antonio).

Obviously, there’s no reason to sound the alarm quite yet. After all, James should have a pretty good feel for what Boston is going to throw at him going forward.

3. So, about that third quarter…

During the third frame the Cavs outscored Boston 29-17 (including a 12-3 run down the stretch), and had sliced a 28-point lead down to 14 entering the final frame.

They gave themselves a fighting chance, but Boston essentially sealed the game as they went on a 7-0 run in the opening 1:08 of the fourth quarter.

Boston looked to blitz Cleveland in a lot of situations throughout the game, but the Cavs were getting their best looks when they could get mismatches for Kevin Love inside.

He scored nine points in the frame, and once again, was able to do some damage when smaller guys like Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart got switched onto him. The Cavs will need to try and maximize those advantages inside in order to get an inside-out game going, something they did a great job of against Toronto.