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Key Moment
Boston and Detroit were neck-and-neck for three-plus quarters of action Saturday afternoon, until midway through the final frame. That’s when the Pistons broke down while the Celtics kept firing, all the way to a 113-104 win at Little Caesars Arena.
Detroit collapsed after taking an 88-85 lead with 8:05 remaining in the fourth quarter, as they allowed Boston to go off on a 15-2 run over a span of less than two and a half minutes.
Payton Pritchard got the Celtics going, as he got a 3-pointer and finger-roll layup to fall. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum both connected once from long range as well, and Al Horford contributed with a mid-range jumper.
By the 5:17 mark, Boston was up 100-90, and Detroit was never able to pull within two possessions after that.
Key Player
Payton Pritchard rarely gets an opportunity to shine in crunch time, but on Saturday afternoon, he was Boston's go-to scorer down the stretch.
Pritchard was the catalyst behind Boston's fourth-quarter run, scoring 10 of his 19 points in the final frame.
The second-year point guard shot 8-of-12 from the field, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range, while also dishing out six assists in 27 minutes of action.
Box Score Nuggets
- Jaylen Brown finished with a game-high 27 points, 18 of which were poured in during the second half.
- Jayson Tatum finished one point behind Brown, while also logging 11 rebounds and six assists.
- Rookie Cade Cunningham led the Pistons with 25 points.
- The Celtics dished out 31 assists on 42 field goals.
- Marcus Smart led the game in assists with seven.
- Payton Pritchard recorded 19 points and six assists off the bench.
- Both teams made 19 free-throws. Boston shot 19-of-21 and Detroit shot 19-of-22.
- Marcus Smart snagged three steals, which was one less than Detroit had in total.
- Al Horford was a game-best plus-16 during 37 minutes of action
- The Celtics scored 56 points in the paint.
- With the win, Boston improved to 6-0 on the road in February and 9-1 overall.
Quote of the Night
Ime Udoka on Payton Pritchard's impact down the stretch.