On Thursday evening, the Boston Celtics confronted off with the Golden State Warriors at TD Backyard in what might probably be the final time the 2 groups play one another this season. The matchup marked the primary time the Warriors had been in Boston since clinching Recreation 6 of the 2022 NBA Finals. “The psychological edge Golden State has on Boston” storyline has been incessantly used within the media as a measuring stick for this 12 months’s Celtics squad, and understandably so after dropping three straight final summer time and their first rematch in San Francisco over a month in the past.
Whereas it was an all-around ugly offensive recreation from each Boston and Golden State, the Celtics managed to exorcise some demons with a clutch 121-118 win over the Warriors. Boston extends their win streak to eight video games, whereas hopefully exhibiting the elephant within the room the door.
“It felt like a playoff recreation,” mentioned Jaylen Brown after the Celtics comeback win. “I don’t learn about you guys, however their depth, their pressure, the best way they got here out, that’s a recreation I’m certain they needed to win….To have the ability to have poise to battle again, that reveals a whole lot of progress that we’ve made. We’ve been taking steps in the precise course.”
Boston outrebounded the Warriors 63-to-47 by being greater (head coach Joe Mazzulla fielded final 12 months’s beginning lineup for the primary time this season) and extra bodily. The Celtics had three gamers rebound within the double digits, together with Jayson Tatum, who pulled down a career-high 19 rebounds, one shy of getting the primary 20 factors/20 rebounds recreation since Jared Sullinger in 2014. The final Celtics participant earlier than Sully to take action? Kevin Garnett, on November 2nd, 2007, in his Celtics debut at TD Banknorth Backyard.
In his first recreation again since being sidelined with an adductor pressure, Jaylen Brown appeared a participant who hadn’t been taking part in basketball for every week, ending with 16 factors on 6-of-18 capturing, together with 1-of-4 from three to go together with 9 rebounds, three assists, two turnovers, and a steal. The lone three-point shot that Brown hit, nevertheless, was a large one, tying the sport at 106 apiece and forcing time beyond regulation. After a sluggish begin within the matchup, Brown scored 7 factors on 3-of-6 capturing with 6 rebounds and a steal within the fourth quarter; he would go on to shoot 2-of-3 from the sphere with a rebound and two assists in time beyond regulation.
“You can really feel it within the Backyard. The power degree was excessive,” mentioned Brown of the playoff ambiance Thursday evening. “The followers had been excited. We got here able to play. They got here able to play. Two good groups, and we simply battled it out.”
When the pictures weren’t falling and the offense sputtered, the Celtics did what good groups do: they locked in and gutted out a grueling win by any means obligatory. It wasn’t fairly, however by all accounts, confirmed the crew themselves what they’re succesful, even when the offense falls off a cliff.
On the sport tying bucket, Jaylen Brown instructed NBC Sports activities Boston’s Abby Chin that, “we simply wanted an enormous basket, and we had been down three. Good made a great play, and I simply let it fly. I hadn’t been in rhythm the entire recreation, however simply centered on the following play, obtained an open look and knocked it down.”
Brown might need been slightly out of kinds, however his large shot swung the sport again Boston’s manner, and gave them the possibility to lastly put some ghosts to mattress. The Celtics will look to maintain issues rolling as they head to Toronto to tackle the Raptors Saturday evening, 5 pm EST tipoff.
