The Celtics rallied from 21 points down in the first half behind the hot shooting of RJ Hunter (17 points), helping the C's pull out a 116-110 win in the season finale over the Wizards in Washington DC. Seven different Celtics scored in double figures, including career-highs for Guerschon Yabusele (13 points), Semi Ojeleye (17 points) and Brad Wanamaker (17 points) as the deep reserves on the Boston bench outplayed the Wizards reserves in a game that Washington had no interest in winning to improve their draft position.
The Celtics finish the regular season with a 49-33 record and now head into the postseason for Game 1 on Sunday against the Pacers.
First Half Notes
- Wizards come out in a 2-3 zone, which gives Terry Rozier and Jaylen Brown plenty of reason to fire out of the gate. Both guys combine for 14 of Boston's initial 25 points.
- Bradley Beal has a field day with the C's second unit defense, going off for 14 points by himself, including a couple of pretty moves in isolation.
- Robert Williams not doing anything early to push his way past Daniel Theis on the depth chart. He's struggled in the pick-and-roll, particularly at the point of attack. Guerschon Yabusele not inspiring confidence as well with his defense and rebounding..
- RJ Hunter and Brad Wanamaker keeping the Celtics offense in it after trailing by as many as 21 points in the first 10 minutes.
- C's third unit has no chance against the Wizards starters but they are making hay against the Wiz bench.
- Semi Ojeleye playing with some good confidence attacking the basket while also knocking down a corner 3. The C's are going to need him for his defense at some point so it's crucial for him not to be a complete zero on the offensive end when he's in there at any point of the postseason.
GAME:
WHO
WHEN
WHERE
RADIO
TV
Projected Starting Lineups:
Celtics
PG: Terry Rozier
SG: Jaylen Brown
SF: Semi Ojeleye
PF: Guerschon Yabusele
C: Daniel Theis
PG: Terry Rozier
SG: Jaylen Brown
SF: Semi Ojeleye
PF: Guerschon Yabusele
C: Daniel Theis
Wizards
G: Tomas Satornasky
G: Bradley Beal
G: Bradley Beal
SF: Troy Brown
PF: Bobby Portis
C: Thomas Bryant
PF: Bobby Portis
C: Thomas Bryant
Pregame Notes
- The Celtics have left their entire starting five back in Boston, along with Gordon Hayward and Marcus Morris in order to get added rest ahead of the preseason finale.
- New addition Jonathan Gibson is expected to be uniform and could see minutes in the Celtics backcourt.
- The news has been good on the injuries to Jayson Tatum and Marcus Smart following the loss against the Magic. Tatum's MRI on a bruised shin was clean and he could be back on the floor this week, according to Brad Stevens. Meanwhile, Smart is feeling better but his status remains uncertain for Game 1 after he suffered an oblique bruise against the Magic.
- The Celtics will likely be better off losing on Tuesday night when it comes to their draft standing since the Wizards are just a half game behind the Grizzlies in the lottery. More details on that scenario here.
