CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (4-3) 122, BOSTON CELTICS (3-5) 121
TD Garden
Friday
Radio: WTAM-AM 1100, WMMS-FM 100.7, La Mega-FM 97.7
TV: Fox Sports Ohio

QUICK SHOTS: 1. LeBron James exploded for a season-high 41 points and seven assists for the Cavaliers. His team needed every one of them. They fought all the way back from a 19-point deficit to see the Celtics have a chance to win the game at the end.

2. However, Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo, who was being guarded by Shawn Marion, lost the handle on the ball and never got up a shot at the buzzer. This is the same man who dished out a game-high 16 assists. Yet, in crunch time, he loses the handle. An incredible turn of events.

3. Cavaliers coach David Blatt's homecoming couldn't have been better. He grew up in Framingham, Mass., about 20 miles west of Boston. He lived and died with the Celtics as a kid. Obviously, he's no longer a huge Celtics fan. The Cavaliers improved to 3-2 on the road this season, which made Blatt's day.

4. The Cavaliers committed just 11 turnovers in the game, which led to 14 points for the Celtics. James had three turnovers. The rest of the starting lineup had two. Point guard Kyrie Irving played 41 minutes in the game. He didn't have a turnover.

 5. The Cavaliers have been one of the best free-throw shooting teams in the league. However, on Friday, they converted 28 of 37 (76 percent). Had they been better at the foul line, they would have won handily. 

6. The Cavaliers ran into old friend Tyler Zeller, who was dealt to Boston in July. The Cavaliers were trying to carve out cap space to sign James. It had to be done. Yet, Zeller would have been a solid backup center for years to come. As soon as he was traded, the Cavaliers front court was a bit depleted. And on top of that, he was a neat guy. Also, Dwight Powell is a member of the team. He never played with the Cavaliers, but was on their roster all summer. Zeller ended with eight points and no rebounds in 15 minutes.

5. The Cavaliers have now won three in a row, including their last two on the road. The Celtics had a three-game winning streak snapped against the Cavaliers. Boston swept the season series against them last season. 

6. The Cavaliers shipped rookie center Alex Kirk to the D-League on Friday. He be in the lineup for the Canton Charge's home opener against Delaware on Saturday. He'll miss at least the Cavaliers' two weekend games vs. Boston and home against Atlanta.

UP NEXT: vs. Atlanta, The Q, 7:30 p.m. Saturday

STARTERS

SF LeBron James (6-8, 250) vs. Jeff Green (6-9, 235)

PF Kevin Love (6-10, 243) vs. Jared Sullinger (6-9, 280)
C Anderson Varejao (6-11, 267) vs. Kelly Olynyk (7-0, 238)

SG Shawn Marion (6-7, 228) vs. Avery Bradley (6-2, 180)

PG Kyrie Irving (6-3, 193) vs. Rajon Rondo (6-1, 186)

INACTIVE LIST

Cavs - G Matthew Dellavedova, C Alex Kirk
Celtics - C Vitor Faverani, G Marcus Smart
OFFICIALS

Bill Spooner, Marat Kogut, Scott Wall