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Key Moment
The Boston Celtics were hoping to complete a four-game homestand sweep Wednesday night, but the Brooklyn Nets were quick to shut down such a possibility.
Brooklyn got out to an early lead and never trailed, going up by as many as 29 points before walking away with a 123-104 win at TD Garden.
The Nets dealt most of their damage from late in the second quarter to early in the third when they went on a 22-3 run, turning a 58-49 lead into an 80-52 advantage.
A Grant Williams 3-pointer had brought Boston’s deficit down to nine points with 1:18 left in the second quarter, but the C’s went ice-cold after that point. Boston’s only field goal over the next 5:12 came in the form of an Al Horford and-1.
Meanwhile, the Nets’ offense caught fire, riding the wave of a LaMarcus Aldridge/Patty Mills scoring barrage.
Despite eventually going down by as many as 29 points, the Celtics made a valiant comeback effort in the fourth quarter, cutting their deficit down to 12 points.
But in the end, Brooklyn’s lead was far too much to overcome and the top team Eastern Conference came out on top.
Key Player
Although Boston’s winning streak came to an end Wednesday night, Marcus Smart remained hot.
The starting point guard led his team in scoring with 20 points, equaling the total of his All-NBA counterpart, James Harden.
Though Smart was a bit more efficient in his scoring, as he shot 6-of-14 from the field, 3-of-8 from 3-point range, and 5-of-5 from the free-throw line compared to a 4-of-13/4-of-9/8-of-9 effort from Harden.
Smart also led the Celtics in assists with eight and tied Jaylen Brown for the team-high mark in steals with two. It marked the 10th straight game in which Smart dished out at least five assists.
He was also nearly mistake-free on the turnover front, coughing the ball up just once during his team-high 36 minutes of action.
Box Score Nuggets
- Brooklyn had three 20-point scorers, led by Patty Mills' 23-point effort.
- Marcus Smart led the Celtics in both points (20) and assists (eight).
- James harden came close to a triple-double, finishing with 20 points, 11 assists, and seven rebounds.
- Brooklyn shot 50.6 percent from the field (43-of-85).
- Boston shot 37.4 percent from the field (34-of-91).
- The two teams combined for 58 free-throw attempts – 30 for Brooklyn and 28 for Boston.
- The Celtics made 25 of their 28 attempts from the charity stripe.
- Boston committed just 11 turnovers, while Brooklyn committed only 10.
- Enes Kanter tallied seven points, five rebounds, and two blocks in seven minutes off the bench.
- The Celtics trailed by as many as 29 points and never led at any point in the game.
Quote of the Night
Ime Udoka on winning three of four at home