Final: Celtics 123, Jazz 107 - Tatum drops 38 as C's close trip with three straight wins

BOSTON CELTICS at UTAH JAZZ

9 p.m. - NBCS Boston

Line: Boston -5.5

INJURIES

Boston: Kristaps Porzingis (OUT, hamstring), Jaylen Brown (OUT, pelvic strain), Al Horford (OUT, toe), Svi Mykhailiuk (QUESTIONABLE, personal reasons)

Utah: Taylor Hendricks (OUT, toe), Lauri Markkanen (OUT, quad contusion)

NOTES

• Boston has hit 50 wins in three consecutive seasons. This is the seventh time the Celtics have won 50 of their first 64 games and is the first time since 2007-08.
• Jayson Tatumhas the 5th-best W/L record through the first 500 games of a career among active players:
  • Kawhi Leonard: 377-123 (3 teams)
  • Draymond Green: 368-132 (1 team)
  • Patty Mills: 358-142 (2 teams)
  • Klay Thompson: 350-150 (1 team)
  • Tatum: 330-170 (1 team)

LAST TIME

Celtics 126, Jazz 97 - January 5

The Celtics defended the rim extraordinarily well to start the game, turning Jazz misses into easy chances on the other end and building a 15-point lead. That lead ballooned to 36 as Boston continued to pour it on in the second half and Utah missed almost everything. They played the third quarter basically even, with Joe Mazzulla emptying his bench with a few minutes to go in the quarter and cruising to the finish.

THINGS I’M LOOKING FOR

1. Energy: As I’ve said many times by now, this is a very difficult back-to-back. Losing an hour due to the time zone switch and playing at altitude is a recipe for some weary legs. At the same time, Boston will be playing a bunch of guys who don’t normally get minutes, so they might be able to give the Celtics the boos they're looking for on a tough night. I’m looking for Oshae Brissett, Xavier Tillman, and Neemias Queta to be big boosts for this team tonight. 

2. Bombs away: The Jazz give up the second-highest opponent 3-point percentage in the NBA (39.4%), so I expect the Celtics to willingly gobble up all those opportunities to shoot. Walker Kessler is a very good rim protector and the Jazz are bad at rotating out to shooters, so if Boston just drives and kicks, they should get all the clean looks they want. 

3. Defense: I don’t want to see a shootout. The Celtics are without Horford and Porzingis, so it’s up to that front line I mentioned before to step up. Also, I’m looking for Jrue Holiday and Derrick White to get a few rear-view blocks. 

Follow along with my thoughts as the game goes on. They’ll show up below and in the comments section, so hop in and share your opinion as well.