March 8, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) drives toward the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jaylen Tyson (20) during the first half at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images Jaylen Brown had 23 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as the Boston Celtics earned a 109-98 victory over the host Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday afternoon.
Jayson Tatum scored 20 points on 6-of-16 shooting for the Celtics, who are second in the Eastern Conference behind the Detroit Pistons. This was the six-time All-Star’s second return to action after tearing his right Achilles tendon in May during the 2025 playoffs.
For fourth-place Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell scored a game-high 30 points and Evan Mobley had 24 points and eight rebounds. The Cavaliers have their season-high home winning streak at seven and are 22-9 since Dec. 29.
Boston received big games off the bench from Payton Pritchard, who had 18 points and seven assists, and Baylor Scheierman, who had 16 points and 10 rebounds. Sam Hauser scored 15 points with five 3-pointers.
Cleveland trailed 81-55 in the third quarter, but Jaylen Tyson’s 3-pointer brought them within 8 points at 94-86 midway through the fourth quarter. James Harden had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Cavaliers.
Tatum scored 14 points in the first half and Brown added 11 to give the Celtics a 56-36 halftime lead. Mobley had 14 points against Cleveland, which missed 22 of 24 3-point attempts and shot 28.9 percent from the field.
Mobley scored seven points as the Cavaliers jumped out to an 11-3 lead, but Tatum scored 12 points over the next seven minutes to give Boston a 35-26 advantage.
The Celtics played their first game Saturday without center Nikola Vucevic, who underwent surgery for a fractured right ring finger and will not be reevaluated until early April. He was traded from the Chicago Bulls on February 5.
Cavaliers center Jarrett Allen did not play with a sore right knee and rookie guard Tyrese Proctor sat out with a right quadriceps injury.
Boston begins a three-game road trip with title contenders continuing against the San Antonio Spurs and the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder.
–Field level media
