WASHINGTON, May 13 (Xinhua) -- The Boston Celtics defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 108-83 in Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals at home on Sunday.
Boston were on fire as guard Jaylen Brown scored a team-high 23 points while veteran leader Al Horford added 20. Rookie Jayson Tatum overcame a quiet start to add 16 points.
Celtics forward Marcus Morris poured in 21 points and 10 boards to also go along with some stifling defence on Cavs star LeBron James, who finished with 15 points on 5-for-16 shooting and was 0-for-5 from the 3-point range.
It's not just James but the whole Cleveland team who could not hit a shot. The Cavaliers shot 36 percent overall and went 4 for 26 from three. Center Kevin Love led Cleveland with 17 points, but went 5 for 14 from the floor. J.R. Smith went 2 for 9 in 29 minutes and scored just four points. Kyle Korver went 1 for 5 from three and had five points.
The host team stormed to 36-18 lead in the opening quarter and enlarged the cushion to 61-35 by halftime. The Cavs mounted a challenge in the third quarter but it was too late.
Game 2 will be held on Tuesday in Boston.
