Key Moment
The Boston Celtics wrapped up their preseason a little earlier than expected. That’s because they took the sting out of the Hornets in a matter of minutes during Thursday night’s preseason finale.
The visiting Celtics tore open the game on a 30-13 and never gave Charlotte a chance to get back into the game after that.
The Hornets opened the scoring on the first possession of the game, but that would wind up being their only lead of the game – and it didn’t last long.
The C’s took turns scoring in bunches with all five starters getting involved. First, it was Derrick White, who knocked down their first two buckets via a 3-pointer and a driving layup to give Boston a 5-2 lead. Then Tatum dropped in consecutive baskets on a driving layup and a 17-foot pull-up jumper. Jaylen Brown took over next, scoring eight straight points for the C’s, including a couple of deep threes. Jrue Holiday, after dishing out three assists (one to each of his aforementioned teammates), broke into the scoring column with a deep two. And finally, Kristaps Porzingis joined the party with a turnaround, and-1 jumper.
Boston was up 30-13 before the game was even 10 minutes deep, and you could tell the team was just going to keep piling it on. The C's didn’t disappoint, winning the first quarter 34-19, before going up 66-40 at halftime, 100-65 after three quarters, and finally finishing with a 127-99 drubbing.
Key Player
Jaylen Brown has a history of starting off games hot, and Thursday night was no exception. The All-NBA wing erupted for 13 points during the first quarter, setting the tone for a scorching offensive night for Boston.
Brown finished with a game-high 20 points on an efficient 8-of-12 from the field, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range. He also grabbed four rebounds, was plus-18 in 23 minutes of action, and put himself all over the highlight reel with some nasty dunking.
Box Score Nuggets
- The C's snagged 22 steals. Their regular-season franchise record is 21.
- Jaylen Brown led all scorers with 20 points.
- Kristaps Porzingis recorded a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds.
- Charlotte logged only three more field-goal makes (37) than the Celtics had assists (34).
- The Celtics made 51 shots on 105 attempts.
- Boston made 10 more 3-pointers (14-45) than the Hornets (4-28).
- The C's scored exactly 100 points through three quarters for the second straight game.
- Payton Pritchard dished out a game-leading eight assists off the bench.
- Jrue Holiday and Jayson Tatum finished right behind PP with seven dimes apiece.
- Derrick White logged a game-best plus-23 in 23 minutes of action.
- Neemias Queta scored 12 points (6-6 FG) in 13 minutes off the bench.
Quote of the Night
“The vibes are great right now."
– Neemias Queta on Boston's 4-1 preseason