Payton Pritchard scored a game-high 23 factors, together with buzzer-beaters to finish the primary and second quarters, to steer the Celtics previous his hometown Portland Path Blazers on Monday evening.
The Oregon native went 8-for-17 from the sphere and 5-for-11 from three as Boston grinded out a 102-94 win at TD Backyard. An damage to his left pinky finger — which Pritchard stated has bothered him for a month — briefly despatched him to the locker room in the course of the fourth quarter, however he later returned.
“I’ll be all proper,” the Celtics guard stated after icing his finger postgame. “I’ve been coping with it, jamming it backwards and forwards. And then you definately simply form of hit it, and it goes sideways a bit of bit. However once you play basketball, you take care of finger accidents.”
Jaylen Brown added 20 factors, eight rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals for the Celtics, who improved to 29-17. Derrick White dedicated a career-high eight turnovers however clinched the win with a 3-pointer and a steal within the closing minutes.
The Blazers, who had been enjoying with out main scorer Deni Avdija (again), acquired 19 factors from Jerami Grant, 18 from Toumani Camara and 14 from former Celtics guard Jrue Vacation, who was enjoying his first recreation again in Boston since his offseason commerce to Portland.
“Any time you retain a group below 100 factors, you give (your self) a possibility to win,” Brown stated. “I believe defensively, we did that. Offensively, it wasn’t as crisp because it might be, however we did sufficient to get the job completed.”
The Celtics opened with one among their most dominant quarters of the season, outscoring the Blazers 32-11 by means of balanced offense and smothering protection. Portland had as many turnovers (4) as made area objectives within the body, and Boston’s frontcourt duo of Neemias Queta and Amari Williams restricted Blazers large man Donovan Clingan’s affect on the glass.
The 11 factors had been the fewest scored by a Celtics opponent in any quarter this season.
Williams, pushed as much as No. 2 on the middle depth chart with backup heart Luka Garza (sickness) inactive, impressed in prolonged motion. Throughout one early sequence, the two-way rookie flushed a dunk, blocked a brief jumper by Grant, then transformed an and-one layup towards ex-Celtic Robert Williams III, who was going through his former group for the primary time since his 2023 commerce to Portland.
Later, Amari Williams intercepted an inbounds cross and drew a foul in transition. By halftime, he’d already set or tied his profession highs in most classes, together with minutes (16), factors (4), rebounds (5), blocks (two) and plus/minus (plus-15). The Kentucky product completed with 9 factors and 7 boards in 26 minutes.
“I assumed Amari did an ideal job as we speak,” Brown stated. “I assumed he seemed distinctive. He got here out, he protected the rim, he was the place he was purported to be for essentially the most half. Amari made it straightforward for us tonight. Any given evening, relying on how the group is enjoying us, that communication needs to be nice.”
Fellow 2025 draftee Hugo Gonzalez additionally made a direct affect, ending a troublesome layup off a feed from Williams seconds after subbing in.
The Celtics honored Vacation, a core member of their 2024 NBA championship group, with a video tribute after the primary quarter — then watched him lead a Blazers rally to start out the second. The 2024 NBA champion scored eight fast factors, together with two 3-pointers, as a part of a 12-3 Portland run.
Vacation’s squad hung round throughout a rock-fight second quarter that featured 17 whole fouls and 12 turnovers, however Boston reestablished management with a 14-4 run that stretched into the second half. A Pritchard three, adopted by a fast-break Derrick White dunk, put the Celtics forward 61-41 early within the third.
Boston’s lead plateaued there, nonetheless. Threes from Vacation and Camara, layups by Caleb Love and a succession of Grant free throws trimmed the deficit to 10 by the tip of the quarter because the Celtics’ offense started to stagnate. Brown and Pritchard accounted for practically all of their group’s scoring over the ultimate eight-plus minutes of the third, offering 12 of its 14 factors throughout that stretch.
Portland minimize it to single digits early within the fourth with a pair of at-the-rim makes by Robert Williams III, the second of which Vacation arrange by stealing an errant White cross. Clingan — a former UConn star who piled up 18 rebounds in the teams’ previous meeting, a 114-108 Blazers win on Dec. 28 — additionally upped his exercise with two fourth-quarter putbacks.
However the Celtics made the performs crucial to stop a full-fledged comeback.
In a single key sequence, Gonzalez dove on a unfastened ball after a Simons steal and fed Sam Hauser for an open 3-pointer. In one other, later scored on consecutive possessions to make it 91-75. White answered a Clingan basket with a momentum-shifting three. Pritchard did the identical after a Camara triple.
Portland acquired to inside 5 factors within the closing minute earlier than White canned a nail-in-the-coffin 3-pointer with 24.1 seconds remaining.
“I believe the primary half was us enjoying nice two-way basketball,” Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla stated. “I assumed our offense was good, however our offense was good as a result of they didn’t have any offensive rebounds and we didn’t foul. Second half, they turned up the stress loads. We had been competing, however we weren’t executing. I assumed that stored us in it, and I assumed we had been compelled to should execute within the halfcourt. Which, they make the sport look ugly, however I assumed we did an excellent job of executing.”
The Celtics will proceed their four-game homestand Wednesday towards the Hawks (7:30 p.m.). Atlanta shall be with out former Celtics heart Kristaps Porzingis, who has been sidelined since Jan. 7 with Achilles tendonitis.
Different observations:
— Josh Minott was again in uniform for Boston after lacking 10 video games with an ankle sprain, however he didn’t see motion. A wholesome DNP for a stretch earlier than his damage, the 23-year-old wing has logged simply three whole minutes since Christmas.
— Reserve large man Chris Boucher, who has not performed since Nov. 23, was inactive due to sickness.
— Regardless of messy highway situations round Boston following Sunday’s winter storm, the gang at TD Backyard was close to capability.
