Boston Celtics head coach Brad Stevens isn't showing signs of frustration after losing a second-straight game to the Cleveland Cavaliers on the road and finding himself in a tough position, forced to defend home court to come out alive from these Eastern Conference Finals.
The Cavs made use of a massive first-quarter lead and rode it to the final minutes of the game, despite the Celtics leading every remaining quarter.
“It's the best two out of three to go to the NBA Finals. Doesn't get better than that,” Stevens said after a 111-102 loss drew the series at 2-2, according to ESPN's Chris Forsberg. “Ultimately, anybody that didn't think this was going to be tough — I mean, everything is tough. In this deal, it's a blast to have to grit your teeth, get up off the mat and go after it again. That's part of it.”
The Celtics had chances but squandered them — as the Cavs generated 15 points directly off the 15 missed dunks and layups that Boston had in Game 4 on Monday night.
“Very frustrating. But that's life,” said Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, who led the team in scoring with 25 points. “You keep moving.”
Boston still has home court advantage, but the Cavs have all the momentum after evening up the series with two big wins at home, making this best-of-three scenario a daunting one against LeBron James, the leading bucket-getter in playoff history.
Stevens and company will have to re-assess their strategy in hopes to prevent first-quarter letdowns like they've had in the last two games, as the Celtics stand a much better chance to win playing ahead than rallying from behind.
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