Game FlowThree Reasons They WonThe Usual Suspects Carried the ScoringToronto’s Scorers Didn’t Match Boston’sNeemias Queta’s Roll ContinuedPlayer Grades
BOSTON — It wasn’t the prettiest of games, but the Celtics got 49 combined points from Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Neemias Queta was great at both ends, and the Celtics broke it open in the fourth to win 115-101
Game Flow
The Celtics opened the game on a 12-4 run but the Raptors scored eight straight to tie it up. It got a little sloppy after that, with Boston turning it over five times for seven Toronto points. Neemias Queta was once again a big part of the Celtics offense early on, leading Boston with eight first quarter points.
The sloppiness continued into the second, with both teams missing a lot of shots and turning it over. The Celtics saving grace was their offensive rebounding, which kept things close until Jaylen Brown triggered an 18-8 run to put Boston up 54-46 at halftime.
The turnovers continued in the third, and the Raptors were able to cut the lead down to one with 6:22 left. The teams went back-and-forth after that, with Boston settling for a three-point lead going into the fourth. Jaylen Brown scored eight in the quarter but Boston turned it over five more times for eight Raptors points.
The Celtics opened the fourth on a 13-4 run to get the lead back up to double-digits and never looked back. They dominated the fourth quarter, with Pritchard cooking to start, Tatum handling things for a bit after that, and Brown closing the door.
Three Reasons They WonThe Usual Suspects Carried the Scoring
It’s a pretty standard formula for the Celtics at this point. Tatum and Brown do their thing, Pritchard gives them a boost off the bench, and then they get one more guy to chip in. Brown led the way with 26, Tatum added 23, Pritchard had 17, and Queta was the other guy.
Toronto’s Scorers Didn’t Match Boston’s
Brandon Ingram got to 15 points but only because he hit a few buckets after the game was broken open in the fourth. Scottie Barnes only had 10. The Raptors did get seven guys in double-figures, but no one had more than 16.
Neemias Queta’s Roll Continued
He was great on both ends, not only blocking three shots, but deterring Raptors drives. He started the game the same way he started the win in Milwaukee, by getting open on rolls and finishing at the rim. His timing on those has improved so much that it’s making it hard for teams to switch or double.
Player Grades
Neemias Queta: A (18 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks)
I don’t think I’ve seen players straight up avoid Queta the way the Raptors did in this game. I might be wrong, but it felt like a different level of fear from the Raptors wings than we’ve seen from other teams over the season.
It feels like Queta is leveling up right now.
Jayson Tatum: A (23 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, 5 turnovers)
The scoring is always there, even though the efficiency is up and down this season. The rebounding has been next level this season, and he’s now officially averaging more than 10 per game. It’s still a small sample, but it’s still great to see. On top of that, his passing is reaching another level too. He’s seeing the floor really well.
The turnovers weren’t great, but three of them were offensive fouls, not live ball turnovers.
Jaylen Brown: A (26 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, 5 turnovers)
His drives and finishes are more poised and creative. He’s able to create advantages for himself and get to the rim with relative ease. His turnovers were more problematic, but some of that credit has to go to the Raptors defense. They forced 18 Celtics turnovers, so Brown wasn’t alone in having a problem.
Payton Pritchard: A- (17 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 3 steals)
He hit one three-pointer, three layups, and three shots in the paint non-restricted area. He really helped break the game open not only with his 11 points, but also two steals in the fourth.
Sam Hauser: B+ (8 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist)
A solid game. His ability to attack closeouts and finish inside the three-point line has been on display a lot more lately. That’s going to pay off in the long run as teams start to respect that.
Derrick White: B (10 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists)
He’s taken a little bit of a step back recently, doing more filling of the gaps. White doesn’t need to dominate the ball to be effective, which we know, and this is a good example of how that looks.
Jordan Walsh: B (4 points, 1 steal)
He only played 13 minutes, but he brought energy and defense.
“You can just rely on him to be impactful defensively,” Joe Mazzulla said. “But also his crashing and his ability to drive closeouts is getting better, and that’s key this time of year. You want guys that you know when you put in, whether it’s five minutes or 20 minutes, you can rely on them to make plays, and he does that, especially on the defensive end.”
Baylor Scheierman: B- (5 points, 5 rebounds)
Not a great shooting night, but the five rebounds was nice.
Nikola Vučević: D (4 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist)
Rough night for Vučević, who was a -14 in a 14-point Celtics win. The defensive drop-off was huge and his timing was just off.