Key Moment
Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum had what was possibly their most impressive, combined start of their six-year partnership Sunday night, simultaneously erupting out of the gate against the Washington Wizards and setting the tone for a blowout Celtics win at TD Garden.
Both star wings reached double-digits in the scoring department within four and a half minutes of the opening tip. Together, they nearly doubled Washington’s first-quarter point total, 27-15.
Tatum opened the game with back-to-back 3-pointers on the first two Boston possessions. Brown then hit a driving layup and a 3 of his own. They traded baskets from that point forward, combining for the first 23 Celtics points to Washington's 10.
Brown finished the quarter with 16 points, shooting 4-of-7 from the field, 2-of-4 from 3-point range, and a perfect 6-of-6 from the free-throw line. Tatum tacked on 11 points, hitting 4-of-6 from the field and 3-of-5 from long range.
There wasn’t much scoring from either Brown or Tatum from that point forward, as they finished with 24 and 23 points, respectively, but they got plenty of help from their teammates, who helped maintain the large lead for a 112-94 win.
Key Player
The Jays may have stolen the spotlight out of the gate Sunday night, but Malcolm Brogdon was the most impactful player throughout.
The veteran combo guard had his best game in a Celtics uniform, scoring a season-high 23 points in 23 minutes of action off the bench.
Brogdon put forth an excellent overall shooting performance, making 6-of-12 from the field, 3-of-5 from deep, and a perfect 8-of-8 from the free-throw line. He also dished out the third-most assists in the game with four, corralled two rebounds, and didn’t turn the ball over a single time all night.
Box Score Nuggets
- Jaylen Brown (24 points), Jayson Tatum (23 points), and Malcolm Brogdon (23 points) combined for 62.5 percent of Boston's scoring.
- Brown also led the Celtics in rebounding with 10 boards.
- Washington's highest scorer (Kristaps Porzingis – 17 points) finished with six fewer points than Boston's third-highest scorer.
- Brad Beal, who entered the game averaging 22.6 points on 59.5 percent shooting, finished with 12 points on 4-of-16 shooting.
- The Celtics assisted on 29 of their 36 field goals.
- Boston had a 43-36 advantage on the boards.
- The C's shot 19-of-20 from the free-throw line.
- Washington, which entered with a league-high field-goal percentage of 49.1 percent, shot just 38.8 percent.
- Porzingis had nearly twice as many offensive rebounds (seven) as Boston had as a team (four).
- The Celtics led by as many as 25 points and never trailed.
Quote of the Night
"I love 3-pointers. I like math."
– Joe Mazzulla on the Celtics shooting 21-of-47 from deep.