BOSTON — The defending NBA champion held off the league's hottest team on Tuesday night, with Jayson Tatum scoring 33 points and adding 12 rebounds to lead the Boston Celtics to a 120-117 victory over Cleveland, handing the Cavaliers their first loss after opening the season with 15 straight wins.

Cleveland cut a 21-point deficit to two in the third quarter, and Donovan Mitchell hit a rainbow 3-pointer with 24 seconds left to make it a four-point game.

Tatum sank one of two free throws, and then clobbered Mitchell at the other end, leaving the Cavaliers guard on the floor in need of medical attention.

Mitchell eventually stepped to the line and sank both free throws, but Boston inbounded the ball without trouble and passed it downcourt for an easy Al Horford dunk to clinch it.

Tatum sank six of Boston's 22 3-pointers, and added seven assists for Boston's third straight win.

Mitchell scored 35 points, and Evan Mobley had 22 points and 11 rebounds for the Cavaliers, who were only the fourth team in NBA history to open the season with 15 wins in a row — the longest winning streak in Cavaliers franchise history.

Tatum said Boston's championship pedigree, though, helped the Celtics over the line as Cleveland threatened late in the game.

"We've played a lot of basketball, we've played in the biggest games," Tatum said. "NBA is a bunch of talented teams — guys are gonna make plays, they're gonna make shots.

"I say it all the time — how you respond shows your growth and how special your team is."

Tatum admitted that ending Cleveland's unbeaten record, which has left it sitting on top of the Eastern Conference, had motivated the Celtics.

"They came in 15-0 feeling like they were the best team; we felt like we were the best team — it's all competition. We were ready to play today," Tatum said.

Boston was quickly into its stride, rattling in five early three-pointers to sprint into an 18-8 in the opening minutes of the first quarter.

Cleveland rallied to reduce the deficit to 26-20 at the end of the first quarter, but the Celtics kept up the pressure in the second.

Westbrook milestone

In Memphis, Tennessee, Denver Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook posted the 200th triple-double of his career on Tuesday night in a win over Memphis.

The NBA record-holder for triple-doubles reached the milestone late in a 122-110 victory.

The 36-year-old Westbrook finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists, and it took him until the final minutes to accomplish the feat.

With 1:28 left, Westbrook was one rebound shy of the triple-double when center Dario Saric missed a 3-pointer. Westbrook grabbed his only offensive rebound of the game.

Westbrook said he wasn't thanking Saric for the miss that led to the triple-double.

"I thank him for making the next one to close the game, which is the most important," he said.

Westbrook is 19 triple-doubles ahead of Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson, and 62 in front of Magic Johnson. His teammate — Nikola Jokic — is fourth with 136, followed by LeBron James at 117.

Agencies