CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Cavaliers are heading back to Boston. And they're doing so with the Eastern Conference Finals all tied up.
After returning to Cleveland facing an 0-2 deficit, the Cavs held serve on their home court, evening the best-of-seven series at two games apiece with a 111-102 victory over the Boston Celtics at Quicken Loans Arena on Monday night. The Cavs will now head back to Boston for a crucial Game 5 on Wednesday evening, before returning to Cleveland for Game 6 on Friday.
LeBron James scored 44 points in the latest Cavaliers victory, while Kyle Korver scored 14. Center Tristan Thompson recorded a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
What follows is a running recap of the Cavs' Game 4 victory, complete with highlights and analysis.
Fourth quarter
1:29: Cavs 109, Celtics 98: LeBron James drains a 3-pointer and that should just about do it at The Q.
3:31: Cavs 104, Celtics 93: Cavs push their lead back to 11 after LeBron James steals a pass intended to keep the ball inbounds and lays it in. Cavs 3 and a half minutes away from tying this series up.
6:01: Cavs 100, Celtics 89: Celtics had cut the Cavs' lead to 7, but a Kevin Love putback and LeBron James layup help push the Cavs' advantage lead back to 11.
8:28: Cavs 96, Celtics 88: And just like that, the Cavs' lead is cut to single digits on an Al Horford dunk. Timeout Cleveland.
Third quarter
End of quarter: Cavs 89, Celtics 86: Cavs enter the fourth quarter up 13 and 12 minutes away from tying this series at two games apiece.
2:59: Cavs 81, Celtics 72: Celtics cut the Cavs' lead to 9 in what's been a relatively sloppy quarter for both teams. LeBron already up to 33 points, while Kevin Love sits on the bench with 5 fouls.
9:50: Cavs 68, Celtics 57: Cavs call a timeout after a Jaylen Brown alley-oop lyric off a pass from Marcus Morris cuts their lead to 11.
Second quarter
End of quarter: Cavs 68, Celtics 53: Cavs close the quarter on a big run, stretching their lead back to 15 points before heading into the locker rooms for halftime. In the process, James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for the most field goals in NBA Playoffs history.
2:33: Cavs 59, Celtics 46: Cavs stretch their lead back to 13 when LeBron sinks an outside jumper and then toys with Terry Rozier for a lay-in. Cavs doing a great job of exploiting lineup mismatches.
4:18: Cavs 53, Celtics 43: Celtics making a run as they cut the Cavs' lead to 10 on a Marcu Morris jump shot. Cavs had previously led by as many as 16 points.
6:17: Cavs 48, Celtics 35: Cavs continuing to keep the Celtics at an arm's length, thanks in large part to Kyle Korver, who has scored 11 points and made all 3 of his 3-point attempts.
First quarter
End of quarter: Cavs 34, Celtics 18: Cavs end the first quarter on a 13-3 run, as James leads all scorers with 11 points. Celtics forward Marcus Morris -- who has been James' primary defender -- already has three fouls.
3:05: Cavs 23, Celtics 15: Celtics call a timeout as the Cavs continue to build momentum with Kevin Love finding LeBron James for a long outlet pass.
5:38: Cavs 16, Celtics 10: Cavs and Celtics playing back and forth early before Cavs manage to stretch their lead to six after a LeBron James layup follows a J.R. Smith three. And-1 free throw from LeBron coming.
