CLEVELAND — CLEVELAND (AP) Collin Sexton scored 29 points, Darius Garland added 25 and Cleveland's young guards made big plays down the stretch as the Cavaliers ended a four-game losing streak with a 117-110 win over the Boston Celtics.
The Cavs also ended a nine-game losing streak to the Celtics, who wore their familiar green on St. Patrick's Day but had nothing to celebrate. Cleveland played with a lead all night, but had to hold off a second-half rally by Boston led by Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
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Tatum scored 29 and Brown 28 for the Celtics, who lost at home to the Utah Jazz on Tuesday. Once among the favorites to make the NBA Finals, the team is now just seventh in the Eastern Conference with a record of 20-20.
Isaac Okoro added 15 points for Cleveland. The rookie guard also delivered a vicious dunk off an assist from Garland, a key basket that helped put the game on ice.
Tonight was the Cavs' first home game since the death of longtime former play-by-play announcer Joe Tait, who passed away last week at the age of 83. The team held a moment of silence in his memory prior to tipoff.
At 15-25, the Cavaliers now sit only 2 1/2 games behind the Indiana Pacers for 10th in the East, which would give them a spot in the NBA's play-in tournament for the postseason. They'll get a day off before hosting the San Antonio Spurs Friday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
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