Repeated home victories for the Boston Celtics.
Not only that, but they managed to pull it off without their three best players.
With 30 points from Jayson Tatum and 21 points from Payton Pritchard (who came off the bench), the Boston Celtics upset the Orlando Magic 128-111 on Friday night to keep their home winning streak alive. The Celtics were without Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and even Luke Kornet as they played on consecutive nights—their third game in as many days.
“We had to change our game a little bit,” Pritchard said, leading a bench that outscored Orlando’s 47-28. He went 6-for-7 from outside the arc. Without KP and Al, we would not be able to win half-court sets. However, due to their absence, we were cоmpelled to rely on our speed.
Muscle discomfort forced the withdrawal of Porzingis and Kornet, while Horford, 37 years old, rested after contributing 23 minutes to Thursday’s victory over Cleveland.
The Celtics’ 13-game winning streak in Boston ranks second all-time for the franchise’s opening games of a season. The 1957–58 Boston Bruins started the season with a 17–0 home winning streak, spearheaded by Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, and Tommy Heinsohn.
Starting on March 5th of last year, the Celtics have gone 20 games without a home loss during the regular season. (Yes, they were eliminated from the playoffs last year, with a Game 7 loss in the Eastern Conference finals to the Miami Heat.)
“We’ve dropped some games that we should have, or didn’t want to, over the years at home,” said Jaylen Brown, who scored 18. “You can’t skip any steps,” is the thinking. Be cognizant of the task at hand, the end objective, and our mission at all times—during shootarounds, practices, warmups, and even as you’re making your way to the bus. I believe that’s the reason for our impressive home run.
Sam Hauser added four steals to Derrick White’s 19 points, while Boston’s lone 7-footer, Neemias Queta, blocked three shots in addition to assisting on eight assists. Starting at center for the Sixers was 6-foot-6 Lamar Stevens, while Neemias Queta, in his fourth game of the season, blocked three shots.
“It’s fantastic for them when they seize the chance; they really shine,” Brown remarked. “For those guys, games like this meаn a lot.”
The Magic, who had a four-game winning streak over the Celtics, were led by 19 points from Jalen Suggs and 15 points and 11 rebounds from Goga Bitadze. There was the In-Season Tournament match in Orlando, where Boston suffered their lone group stage defeat.
With five minutes remaining in the first quarter, Pritchard made a 3-pointer to cut a six-point lead in half. Prior to that, the Celtics had missed their first eight 3-point tries. He extended Boston’s advantage to 30-24 with two more baskets thirty seconds later and one more as the quarter came to a close, part of an 18-7 run.
Cole Anthony made back-to-back 3-pointers to get Orlando within a point early in the second quarter, but Boston scored 16 of the subsequent 21 points to go ahead. In the second quarter, the Celtics led by 16 points, and in the third, their lead grew to 25 points.