Everything you need to know about the Celtics’ 104-88 win over the Magic in quickie form.
HEADLINES
Eight in a row: Add a new honor to Brad Stevens’ Celtics resume — eight-straight wins are the most under his direction. The visitors did it with relative ease against the shorthanded Magic, shaking off an ugly offensive first quarter to build a double-digit second-half lead that was never seriously threatened. The eight-game winning streak continues to be the longest streak in the league and keeps the Celtics on top of the NBA standings with an 8-2 overall record.
Al Horford remains on fire from deep: The big man is prioritizing quality over quantity with his 3-point attempts, but it’s paying dividends for the C’s offense. He went a perfect 3-for-3 from downtown against the Magic, pushing his season average to a superb 51.5 percent from downtown (17-of-33). He did most of his damage in the first quarter (9 of his 14 points), but that’s when the C’s offense needed it the most after an ugly shooting start for the team from the field (2-of-10).
TURNING POINT
The Celtics took command of the contest early in the second quarter with Marcus Smart leading the charge with his effort on both ends. Boston turned a one-point deficit into a double-digit lead with an 18-4 run, building the cushion that they easily maintained for the better part of the second half.
TWO UP
Marcus Smart: The 23-year-old point guard flirted with a triple-double, posting 11 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists in just 29 minutes and also added three steals and a block. The shooting from the field was off per usual (4-of-12) but a better representation of his impact can be seen in the plus/minus (+26). He was the best all-around player on the floor on Sunday night.
Scoring balance: Six different players scored between 11 and 18 points (Smart and all the starters), which helped keep the Magic defense off balance in the second half.
TWO DOWN
Marcus Morris from 3-point range: The veteran forward contributed some strong minutes (12 points, 7 rebounds) in his second game back, but he missed badly on his three 3-point attempts on Sunday night and is now 0-for-5 on the season. Look for things to improve as he regains his rhythm (35 percent career shooter from deep).
Magic 3-point shooting: Orlando had the best 3-point shooting percentage in the league coming into Sunday night, but the Celtics helped bring them back to the mean on that front. The Magic shot just 21 percent from downtown (6-of-29), which included 2-of-9 shooting from their top backcourt scorer in Evan Fournier. Terrific perimeter defense from Boston yet again.
INJURIES
None
TOP PLAY
That pass ? pic.twitter.com/ahNCfA0pHA
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) November 6, 2017