Everything you need to know about the Celtics' 114-93 win over the Pistons with BSJ insight and analysis...
Box Score
HEADLINES
Tatum and Brown erupt in blowout win: Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum each scored 26 points on a combined 19/30 FG, helping the shorthanded Celtics overcome a brutal shooting night from Kemba Walker (2 points, 0/7 FG) and run away with a 109-88 win over a struggling Pistons squad that was without Blake Griffin.
Brown and Tatum combined to score 30 of Boston’s 32 points in one stretch of the second and third quarters, to help turn a tight first half affair into a runaway by the end of the third quarter.
With Marcus Smart and Gordon Hayward sidelined, the Celtics also got terrific production out of their bench, including a career-high 18 points from Grant Williams on 8-of-10 FG. Romeo Langford also scored his first NBA basket and delivered a number of solid drives to the paint to chip in with 6 points. Thon Maker had a game-high 15 points for the visitors.
The win puts the Celtics into a tie for second place in the Eastern Conference and improves their record at home to 11-1 on the year. Boston returns to action on Sunday night with a visit from Terry Rozier and the Hornets.
Brad Stevens gives the people Tacko time: The Garden crowd was electric for much of the second half, not just for the big Celtics lead but because it opened up the possibility of Tacko Fall playing time. Brad Stevens relented to the crowd’s wishes with just under six minutes remaining and the big man delivered once he took the floor, finishing with a career-high five points in his second-ever NBA game. The energy in the Garden felt like a playoff game in the final few minutes of the quarter as most fans stood the entire time Fall was on the floor while going crazy every time he touched the ball or scored.
This is the best thing you will see all day. I promise. pic.twitter.com/leNL2oiaIc
— Marc D'Amico (@Marc_DAmico) December 21, 2019
TURNING POINT
Brown erupted for a 10-3 run all by himself in the final 90 seconds of the first half, helping to push Boston’s lead to double digits at the break. The momentum carried over to the second half as the C’s turned the game into a rout by midway through the third quarter.
TWO UP
Jaylen Brown: The swingman erupted for 10 points in the final 92 seconds of the second quarter, knocking down three consecutive 3s to finish the first half with a game-high 19 points on 7-of-9 FG before finishing with a game-high 26.
Grant Williams: The rookie scored a season-high 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting, surpassing his total points in the month of December in his other six games (16). Williams has also scored at least seven points in two consecutive games in his career now and has knocked down four 3s over his last four games.
TWO DOWN
Kemba Walker: The All-Star picked a good night for a stinker with Tatum and Brown rolling. He scored just one point and failed to make a field goal for the first three quarters and managed to cough up seven turnovers in that same stretch. He finished with just two points but also a season-high 11 assists.
Andre Drummond: It’s rather fitting the mediocre Pistons are led by such an inconsistent big man. The C’s limited him to just 12 points and 11 rebounds along with six turnovers over 30 minutes.
TOP PLAY
6 points in nearly 6 seconds.
Jaylen Brown earns tonight's @JetBlue Play of the Game honors. pic.twitter.com/Uig6iT05Wb
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) December 21, 2019
TWO TAKES B-ROBB WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER
Celtics have a window of opportunity to create some separation in East now, despite injuries: Gordon Hayward and Marcus Smart should be back at some point next week from their injuries but after a number of tough tests in the last few weeks, a favorable (but busy) schedule is coming up. Two matchups with the Raptors loom next week but they will be down three key rotation pieces (Norm Powell, Pascal Siakam, Marc Gasol) in those contests. Otherwise, a whopping 11 of Boston’s next 12 opponents will be sub .500 teams. Boston ended the night just as close to the No. 6 seed as they were to the No. 2 seed, but they have a nice slate of chances to put some distance between themselves and the rest of the pack if they can continue to keep taking care of business against flawed teams like the Pistons.
The rookies provided much-needed reasons for optimism: For all of the encouraging play by Grant Williams on the defensive end over the first two months of the season, he had only surpassed the seven-point mark three times before Friday night. An offensive explosion was due and he delivered, building some confidence in his jump shot that is needed after an 0-of-24 start from 3-point range. His defense will be depended on this season in the next month with Rob Williams out so it was encouraging for the team to see his 24 percent shooting percentage revert closer to the mean after an 8-of-10 night. With Langford also showing off some encouraging skills in the paint in his second meaningful NBA action, you can see a bigger glimpse of what appealed to the Celtics there. His role will diminish as the C’s get healthier but he didn’t look out of place on the floor in this one.