Green scores 31 to lead Celtics past Cavs, 103-86

11/29/2013
ASSOCIATED PRESS
  • Cavaliers-Celtics-Basketball-1

    Cleveland Cavaliers' Kyrie Irving (2) shoots between Boston Celtics' Vitor Faverani, left, and Jeff Green in the second quarter of an NBA basketball game in Boston, Friday, Nov. 29, 2013. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

    ASSOCIATED PRESS

    • BOSTON — Jeff Green scored 31 points, the most by Boston player this season, and the Celtics beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-86 tonight for their third victory in four games.

    Jordan Crawford had 11 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for Boston, which at 7-11 has the most wins in the Atlantic Division. Avery Bradley scored eight of his 21 points in the first quarter, when the Celtics jumped to an 18-2 lead. They maintained a double-digit edge for the rest of the game.

    Dion Waiters scored 21 points and Kyrie Irving had 17 for the Cavaliers, who lost their fifth straight game and fell to 1-9 on the road this season. Cleveland scored just 10 points in the first quarter, its worst output for any quarter this season, and lost for the eighth time in nine games.

    The 17-point margin of victory was the Celtics’ largest all season.

    The Celtics scored 18 of the game’s first 20 points, upped the lead to 20 early in the second quarter and extended it to 25 in the third. Cleveland trailed by at least 10 points for all but the first 3:59 of the game.

    Cleveland’s only sustained run came in the middle of the second quarter, when it went on a 16-6 run to cut a 20-point deficit to 10. Anthony Bennett hit a 3-pointer, Waiters also had one, and then Waiters added a three-point play to make it 45-35.

    But the Celtics scored the next eight points, including a 3-pointer and layup by Green.

    Notes: Waiters took a hard foul from Brandon Bass late in the third quarter. ... Russian rookie Sergey Karasev made his first start of the season. It was the Cavs’ seventh different starting lineup. ... Celtics G Courtney Lee missed the game with a sore left knee. ... Bennett, the No. 1 overall draft pick, played 20 minutes and had four points, four rebounds and four fouls.