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Key Moment
Boston controlled the majority of the first three quarters of Tuesday’s matchup with the Utah Jazz. Then it put the game away.
The Celtics led by only eight points after Shelvin Mack put home a driving layup with 4:11 left in the third quarter. They responded swiftly by scoring 10 of the game’s next 11 points to pull ahead 83-66.
Three-point shooting opened and capped the run by the men in green and white. Al Horford canned a trey just 15 seconds after Mack’s basket, and then Jae Crowder swished one home from the right sideline to close the spurt at the 2:22 mark. Isaiah Thomas and Marcus Smart each added a driving layup between Thomas and Crowder’s 3-pointers.
That 17-point lead marked the largest of the game by either team, and Boston’s lead never dropped below seven the remainder of the night.
The Celtics did need to make some more key plays down the stretch to hold off Utah’s comeback bid. Al Horford made a couple of big shots, including a deep 3 from the left wing. Amir Johnson forced Joe Johnson into two misses in one-on-one situations. Avery Bradley connected on not one, but two momentum-crushing treys during a two-minute stretch.
Still, though, that quick run during the final minutes of the third changed the game – and won the game – for Boston.
Key Player
Isaiah Thomas showed last Friday night that he can win a game by himself, but the Celtics would prefer for him to have some help. The little guy got plenty of it Tuesday night against Utah, including a big night from Jae Crowder.
Crowder tied his season high in the scoring column with 21 points. He did so in large part as a result of his outside shooting, as he tied his career high with five made treys. He shot 6-for-8 overall, 5-for-6 from long distance, and 4-for-4 from the charity stripe during the game.
This performance was a great sign for Boston, which becomes much more dangerous when Crowder scores at a high clip. The swingman hadn’t eclipsed the 20-point barrier since opening night. If this is the start of him chipping in 15 or more points on a consistent basis, this is also the start of the C’s becoming a much scarier team to play against.
Box Score Nuggets
- Three Celtics scored at least 21 points, led by Isaiah Thomas' 29.
- Jae Crowder and Al Horford each scored 21 points.
- Crowder tied his career high with five made 3-pointers.
- Boston's largest lead was 17 points, while Utah's was just one point.
- Both teams scored 30 points during the final quarter.
- The C's shot 55.4 percent from the field, 54.8 percent from long range and 94.1 percent from the free-throw line.
- Kelly Olynyk (seven boards) was the only player on Boston's roster to grab more than five rebounds.
- Rudy Gobert (13 rebounds) was the only player in the game to grab more than seven rebounds.
- Isaiah Thomas dished out a career-high 15 assists.
- Gordon Hayward led Utah with 23 points.
- Utah committed only 11 turnovers.
- Boston outscored Utah 14-3 in fast break points.
- Joe Johnson (17 points) and Boris Diaw (15 points) each gave strong efforts off of Utah's bench.
- Twelve players in the game grabbed a steal, and none of them grabbed more than one.
- Amir Johnson blocked a game-high three shots.
Quote of the Night
Brad Stevens on how the Celtics looked during their win over the Jazz.