The Boston Celtics – lacking 4 starters – got here up simply quick towards a Toronto Raptors workforce that had all of its regulars to the tune of a 115-112 ultimate rating. Marcus Sensible led Boston’s efforts with 28 factors, 10 rebounds and 4 assists. For the Raptors, Pascal Siakam tried his finest to enact revenge for the Bubble sequence (with out even going through off towards his warden, Jaylen Brown), ending with 40 factors. 7 gamers scored in double figures for the Celtics.
The Celtics got here out firing as in the event that they have been at full power. They weren’t as dominant as they’ve been, however they have been nonetheless actually good. The “chip on shoulder” power was super proper from the opening tip. Marcus Sensible set the tone early with a pair of 3-point makes, and the bench got here in and surprisingly saved up the tempo regardless of lineups that includes personnel that doesn’t usually play.
For the Raptors, Pascal Siakam was the one one who actually wished to impose his measurement on the undermanned Celtics. He went straight at Daniel Theis relentlessly, making full use of his weight and size to generate high-quality appears to be like on the rim. The Celtics protection thought of it a win when he’d accept a jumpshot when going through down Payton Pritchard (10 factors, 8 rebounds, 5 assists).
The Raptors performed a little bit of catchup within the second quarter. The reserves held their very own roughly in the beginning of the sport, however some sloppy turnovers from Sensible actually gave Toronto some simple momentum with wide-open fastbreak alternatives. Boston did its finest to mix shot making with powerful inside offense. They even manufactured fairly a couple of rim makes an attempt down the stretch of the primary half.
Within the third quarter, Boston began fairly sharp, however because the quarter continued, a few of the sloppy play on each ends re-emerged. To be clear, that is utterly tremendous contemplating who really suited up tonight. However this workforce scrapped and fought for each level. This actually was an admirable effort on all fronts.
A giant key to Boston’s success was Derrick White. He championed bench lineups that held their very own towards Toronto’s large entrance line. The protection was distinctive, and he saved the ball shifting to seek out the arms of shooters like Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser. Taking part in clean-up responsibility was Luke Kornet, who was an enormous issue within the Celtics killing the Raptors in second-chance factors.
Within the fourth, a lineup of Sensible-Pritchard-Nesmith-Hauser-Theis actually placed on an ideal present, maintaining all of Toronto’s pushes at bay with stable protection and powerful, basic offense. Daniel Theis (13 factors, 10 rebounds) went one stretch (together with a play during which he put Siakam in a physique bag), during which he scored seven straight factors for the workforce. Udoka determined to trip with that lineup due to how stable they have been taking part in regardless of Grant Williams and Derrick White sitting on the bench.
Fred VanVleet (14 factors) hit back-to-back 3-pointers to chop the result in one, and that led to a very tight back-and-forth. Some Sensible grifting later, and a vital possession led to the ball sitting in Aaron Nesmith’s arms with just below a minute left within the nook. His 3-point make gave Boston a four-point lead, placing the workforce in prime place. Sadly, Siakam actually wished Bubble revenge, forcing the sport into additional time.
In additional time, Siakam continued imposing his will whereas Boston had a tricky time scoring. The turnovers actually killed the Celtics, with three key miscues coming from Grant Williams and Derrick White on the worst moments. Boston was unable to generate a top quality look within the closing seconds, resulting in the win-streak arising quick. In the end, it’s exhausting to get it completed with 15 turnovers between Sensible, Grant Williams, and Derrick White (15 factors, 8 assists).
The Celtics now have fallen a sport behind the Miami Warmth for the primary seed.
The Celtics will shoot to regain the primary seed (and a season sweep) towards the Miami Warmth on Wednesday night time at 7:30 p.m. EST on ESPN.
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For extra postgame protection of the gritty additional time loss north of the border, tune into the the Backyard Report Postgame Present LIVE on https://www.clnsmedia.com/ proper after the sport. Be a part of A Sherrod Blakely, Bobby Manning, Josue Pavon, Jimmy Toscano and host John Zannis for a full breakdown. Plus, the fellows will talk about the emergence of a number of position gamers.
