‘Don’t want to go home’: JB talks about Cavs’ resilient season following Game 4 loss

CLEVELAND (AP) — With LeBron James watching from a courtside seat, the Boston Celtics beat the severely short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers 109-102 in Game 4 on Monday night to take a 3-1 lead in their East semifinal series.

The Celtics can close out Cleveland with a win in Game 5 on Wednesday night at home. Game 6, if necessary, would be back at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse Friday.

The Cavs got pushed to the brink of elimination with two top players in street clothes on the bench, as Donovan Mitchell (calf) and Jarrett Allen (ribs) sat out with injuries.

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It was nothing new for a Cleveland team that dealt with injuries all season, but it was a big ask for the Cavs to try and survive without Mitchell, their All-Star guard who has carried the offensive load throughout the postseason, or Allen, their leading rebounder.

Following the game, head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said he was proud of how his team played, saying they laid it all out there.

“They wanna win, they don’t want to go home,” he told reporters. “They’re a connected group, that has been resilient all year long. Never once have our guys folded.”

Bickerstaff also pointed to officiating as a big frustration during the game, saying it didn’t seem quite balanced.

“Disappointed with the way the whistle blew tonight,” he said. “Not asking for anything more, we’re asking for equal, and I don’t think we got an equal opportunity tonight.”

The top-seeded Celtics, who have shown a tendency to relax at the wrong time, didn’t show the Cavs much mercy.

Tatum had his second straight strong performance, adding 11 rebounds and five assists. Jrue Holiday had 16 points for Boston.

Darius Garland scored 30 and Evan Mobley and Caris LeVert 19 apiece for the Cavs, who stayed connected with the Celtics and only trailed by 10 going into the fourth.

Bickerstaff said he was especially pleased with the way Garland stepped up during the game, explaining he did a “Great job sparking us and carrying us with his spirit.”

Boston went up 15 on a jumper by Brown, but Cleveland responded with a 10-2 run as Garland and Dean Wade made 3-pointers.

The Cavs were still within 102-97 when Brown buried a 3-pointer with 1:08 left and Boston closed it out at the free-throw line.

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James, who played 11 seasons in two separate stints for Cleveland, was back in his former home arena — a visit certain to drive speculation about where he might play next.

The NBA’s career scoring leader can opt out of his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers this summer, and James has said he’s not made any firm decisions.

Despite dealing with a left knee injury for months, Mitchell averaged 29.6 points in the first 10 playoff games — scoring 50 in a Game 6 loss to Orlando.

He injured his calf in the waning moments of Cleveland’s loss in Game 3 on Saturday and was added to the injury report as questionable on Sunday. Mitchell underwent round-the-clock treatment but didn’t have enough time to heal.

Allen sat out the seventh straight game with a painful injury the center sustained in the opening round.

“I couldn’t be more proud of their effort, we just fell a little short at the end,” Bickerstaff said.

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