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After blowing a 22-point lead in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Boston Celtics found themselves down a point with 19.1 seconds left. Plenty of time, right?
Jayson Tatum bled the clock, Joe Mazzulla finally tried to call a timeout with 4.6 seconds left that went unnoticed, and Tatum fired up one of his patented fallaway shots that bounced off the rim and eventually allowed the Cavs to walk away with a shocking 105-104 victory on Tuesday, March 5.
While the Celtics lost for the first time in a month, much of the late blame fell on Tatum, who, according to NBC Boston’s Chris Forsberg, dribbled 19 times before firing up his final shot of the night.
Jayson Tatum Admits He Should’ve Been Quicker With Final Shot
It was an ugly ending to an otherwise strong game by the Celtics, who saw their 11-game win streak come to an end. For more than three quarters, the Celtics dominated. After holding the Cavs scoreless for the first 3:07 of the fourth quarter, the Celtics held a 22-point lead. Then things fell apart.
Cleveland’s Dean Wade knocked down a 3-pointer to begin Cleveland’s fourth-quarter scoring and finished with 20 points in the fourth quarter alone. His dunk off an offensive rebounds with 19.1 seconds left gave Cleveland a 105-104 lead.
That’s when Tatum got dribble happy.
Tatum dribbled 19 times before letting his fallaway jumper go. Nineteen.
His shot fell into the hands of Kristaps Porzingis, who laid in the offensive rebound. The whistle blew before Porzingis’ basket, and the Cavs were called for a foul on Tatum. The Cavaliers challenged the call, and the referees ruled that Tatum kicked out his leg during the shot, drawing contact. With 0.7 left, the Celtics won the tap at midcourt, but were unable to call a timeout before the final buzzer.
“It’s unfortunate,” Tatum said. “I thought I got fouled, but they didn’t think I got fouled. It’s tough because we would’ve had the tip-in.
“I was just trying to get a clean look. In hindsight, I probably should’ve went a little bit earlier to give us more time and maybe another opportunity.”
Mazzulla Said His Call for Timeout Went Unnoticed
Nineteen dribbles with 19 seconds left isn’t what any team trailing by a point wants to do with the ball. Mazzulla admitted the Celtics needed to be quicker down the stretch.
“We’ve got to go faster there, but I thought D-White got the matchup we wanted into him, and we just have to play a little faster,” Mazzulla said. “Down one in that situation, you try to get a couple more possessions. Just got to get into it faster and go faster and try to extend the game.”
Mazzulla did say he attempted to call a timeout, but it went unnoticed by the officials.
“I called one at 4.6, but they didn’t see it,” he said.
The loss to the Cavs is a painful one for the Celtics, but it’s their first one since February 1. There’s no need to panic in Boston, but it will be interesting to see how they bounce back against the reigning champion Denver Nuggets on Thursday.
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