BOSTON _ Isaiah Thomas' first start for the Cavaliers, planned for Saturday in Orlando, can't come soon enough.
A nationally televised showdown against the Celtics pitting LeBron James against former Cav Kyrie Irving was a flop for the visiting team Wednesday night in TD Garden.
Save for the first-half efforts of James and Kyle Korver, the Cavs could do little right. Kevin Love missed his first eight shots and suffered a right ankle injury in the first half that forced him to sit out the fourth quarter.
The Celtics played defense, while the Cavs showed little interest. There were times when James didn't look engaged, letting young Celtics blow by him for layups or dunks and shooting 1-for-6 in the third quarter.
The result was a 102-88 Celtics victory as the Cavs lost for the fifth time in the last seven games and suffered their fifth consecutive road setback.
The Eastern Conference-leading Celtics (31-10) won their fourth in a row with an attack that saw six players score in double figures.
The Cavs (25-13) dropped their first game on a five-city, 11-day road trip after going 0-3 in late December at Golden State, Sacramento and Utah. They also lost Dec. 19 in Milwaukee.
The Cavs played like they were treading water until Thomas is back on the court, which will come against the Magic barring a setback. Rehabbing a torn labrum in his right hip for the past seven months, Thomas made his Cavs debut in a Tuesday home victory over the Portland Trail Blazers and scored 17 points in 19 minutes.
Little of the energy the Cavs played with against the Blazers was evident against the Celtics, who were faster and more athletic than the veteran Cavs. The Cavs didn't score a point in the fourth quarter until Dwyane Wade hit a short jumper with 8:21 remaining.
Cavs coach Tyronn Lue lifted his starters with 5:33 to go. James led the Cavs with 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists in 32 minutes, Korver added 15 points, Green 13, J.R. Smith 10 and Tristan Thompson totaled 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Love, who was 1-of-11, wasn't the only Cav with shooting issues. Jae Crowder hit 2-of-12, Wade hit 2-of-10 and Green 3-of-11.
Snapped was the Cavs' streak of making at least 10 3s in a franchise-record 26 consecutive games, tied for the third-longest in league history. They hit 8-of-32 from beyond the arc.
Terry Rozier came off the bench to lead the Celtics with 20 points and while Jayson Tatum, the third overall pick from Duke, had an impressive night with 15 points, five rebounds and two assists. Irving finished with 11 points, nine rebounds and six assists in 28 minutes.
The Celtics took a 66-52 lead with 9:17 to go in the third quarter, hitting their first four field goal attempts. An 11-3 run included three 3s _ one each from Jaylen Brown, Tatum and Al Horford _ and Tatum added a deuce.
But that was just the beginning of the Celtics' surge. They pushed the lead to 75-55 after an and-one by Irving with 6:21 left in the third period.
The Cavs trailed 55-47 at the half, miraculous considering the comedy of errors. The Cavs hit just 7-of-29 in falling behind 34-21 with 11:02 to go in the second quarter.
Even their best passes went for naught, including a perfect Smith feed to Crowder that saw Crowder fall and miss the layup. Rozier took over for Irving with 2:35 left in the first quarter and finished that period with eight points, including two 3s. There were sloppy turnovers and a 24-second call by the Cavs.
Then Korver got things going, at least temporarily.
Korver, 0-for-2 with two clunkers as the Cavs fell behind by 13, hit three consecutive 3s and 4-of-5 to end the half. He scored 12 points and James eight from that point on. Even after a Rozier slam with seven seconds to go, Smith hit a 3-pointer to keep the score respectable.
In the first half, Irving scored eight points on 4-of-9 shooting. But he added two rebounds and four assists, three of those on the Celtics' final four field goals and two of them to Horford.
The Celtics avenged a 102-99 loss at Quicken Loans Arena on opening night, a game marked by the broken left ankle suffered by newly signed Celtics free agent Gordon Hayward.
