After a scorching start from deep, Celtics steamroll the shorthanded Nets in their biggest blowout of the season
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For the Celtics, the last few weeks have been tense. Entering Wednesday’s game against the Nets, five of their last six games had been decided by 4 points or fewer, and three of those had gone to overtime. The only rout in this stretch was a 15-point loss against the lottery-bound Magic.
So Boston was due for — and perhaps in need of — a breezy win. And facing a Nets team missing three of its top seven rotation players, including superstar forward Kevin Durant, the Celtics started the game by making eight consecutive 3-pointers and hardly let up after that.
Their 46-point first-quarter built enough of a cushion for them to coast through a 139-96 win in which they led by as many as 49 points.
Jayson Tatum had 31 points and Jaylen Brown added 26 for the Celtics, and both players were able to watch the fourth quarter from the bench.
The boos directed at Nets star Kyrie Irving (20 points) were as muted as they have been since he left this franchise four years ago, but the lopsided score probably muted some of the vitriol.
Observations from the game:
⋅ With Durant, Ben Simmons, and TJ Warren sidelined, Nets coach Jacque Vaughn was left with little choice but to go with a smaller lineup that could make up for obvious defensive deficiencies with scorching 3-point shooting. Then Brooklyn started the game 1 for 11 from the field, and Boston could not miss.
Yes, the Celtics had some good luck when they started the game by making eight consecutive 3-pointers. But they truly found a rhythm by flicking away smaller perimeter defenders such as Irving, Seth Curry, and Joe Harris and reaching the rim with little trouble. In the first half, Boston held an 8-0 edge in second-chance points and a 38-20 advantage in the paint.
⋅ Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla has taken some criticism for Tatum’s excessive workload this season. The All-Star forward has said that he is dealing with left wrist soreness, and said after playing 47 minutes in the overtime win over the Lakers on Saturday that he was exhausted.
But unlike the second half of last season, when Boston rolled over one opponent after another, games this year have generally been tighter, requiring Tatum to play deep into the fourth quarter along with seven overtime contests.
So this night figured to offer a rare chance at a respite. Tatum typically checks out midway through the first quarter before playing the entire second. On Wednesday, he played the whole first as Boston stretched out its massive lead.
About five minutes into the second quarter, after Brooklyn had whittled its 34-point deficit to 24 — notable but hardly to the point of concern — Mazzulla signaled for Tatum to go back in. Then Malcolm Brogdon drilled a 3-pointer for Boston, and Mazzulla waved him back to the bench for another minute or two.
Tatum and Brown both played the entire third quarter, with Boston’s lead never dipping below 30 points. But they went to the bench for the fourth with the Celtics holding a 38-point edge.
⋅ Robert Williams, who returned after missing Saturday’s game because of a sprained ankle, returned and looked excellent. He was extremely active on both ends and finished with 16 points and 9 rebounds in just 19 minutes. A good sign for the young big man.
⋅ The Celtics’ shooting was so scorching that they probably didn’t need any assistance. But later in the second quarter, forward Day’Ron Sharpe provided some anyway. He crouched in his defensive stance as Boston prepared to inbound the ball from its baseline, and he was blissfully unaware when his man, Celtics forward Al Horford, caught a pass in the right corner. By the time Sharpe realized the ball was live, Horford’s shot was airborne, and it went down.