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Key Moment
Pascal Siakam has had his struggles against the Boston Celtics in recent years. Those struggles did not continue Monday night in Toronto.
Siakam scored a game-high 40 points against a depleted Boston team that was missing four of its starters. Those 40 points included the most important four of the night. He dropped in two straight shots from inside the paint to turn a one-point deficit into a three-point lead for Toronto with 1:52 left in overtime.
The first bucket was a complete gift. Siakam had just missed a shot, and as Grant Williams soared in for the rebound, the ball slipped out of his hands and right into Siakam’s in front of the basket. He dropped it in, uncontested, to give Toronto a one-point lead.
Derrick White then missed a driving layup in transition and Siakam was there to grab the rebound. He took the ball in the opposite direction and caught White, who is far undersized compared to Siakam, on a cross-match and went right at him for another bucket.
Those points wound up being the deciding points on the night. Boston was only able to muster up two free throws over the final 1:51 of the game, which allowed Siakam and the Raptors to sneak out with a 115-112 victory.
Key Player
Without Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in Toronto, the Celtics needed someone to step up with a big scoring night. Marcus Smart answered the call.
Smart poured in a season-high 28 points that gave Boston a chance to pull off the upset north of the border. He made 10 shots on the night, including an 8-for-14 performance from inside the arc. He also tied Daniel Theis for the team high in rebounds with 10, which locked in Smart’s second double-double of the season.
The versatile guard rounded out his box score with four assists and one blocked shot over nearly 40 minutes of action against Toronto. He gave Boston a chance.
Box Score Nuggets
- Seven of the eight Celtics who appeared in the game scored in double-figures, led by Marcus Smart's season-high 28.
- Smart (28 points, 10 rebounds) and Daniel Theis (13 points, 10 rebounds) each logged double-doubles.
- Toronto scored 66 points in the paint.
- Boston made four more free throws (22) than Toronto attempted (18).
- Toronto only assisted on 16 of its 46 made baskets.
- Sam Hauser scored a career-high 10 points off the bench for Boston.
- Derrick White dished out a game-high eight assists and also scored 15 points.
- Pascal Siakam scored a game-high 40 points.
- Siakam, Fred VanVleet and Gary Trent Jr., three of Toronto's starters, combined to grab 10 steals.
- Siakam and Scottie Barnes, two of Toronto's starters, each fouled out of the game.
Quote of the Night
Ime Udoka on his younger players logging major minutes Monday night