Boston Celtics deal Golden State Warriors their worst home NBA defeat in 40 years
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Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (right) led the way with 22 points, nine rebounds and seven assists even after sitting out the fourth quarter.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LOS ANGELES – Boston Celtics supporters would not only have been boosted by their side’s emphatic 125-85 National Basketball Association (NBA) victory over the Golden State Warriors, but also the encouraging words from the opposing bench on Jan 20.
The NBA champions have been on a mini slump with an 8-7 record over their last 15 games, but signalled their title aspirations by handing the Warriors their worst home defeat in 40 years. The Warriors had lost 149-104 to the Dallas Mavericks in January 1985.
Steve Kerr, a four-time NBA champion as a coach, dispelled any notions that the Celtics have lost their way.
“It’s perfectly natural for them to have a little bit of an emotional hangover and maybe not be at their best, game after game,” Kerr said of the champions who, with a 30-13 record, sit in second in the Eastern Conference.
“I’ve seen that a million times in this league. But what I would expect is, come play-off time, they’ll be ready to roll.”
The praise did not stop there. Guard Stephen Curry, a four-time NBA champion with the Warriors, added: “Teams spent all summer trying to figure out how to beat you because you’re the one that was holding up the trophy. I don’t know what people expected, but they’re 30-13. They’re doing all right.”
Indeed. Things were so smooth at Chase Centre that Jayson Tatum sat out the entire fourth quarter for the Celtics and still finished as the game’s top scorer with 22 points, adding nine rebounds and seven assists.
Kristaps Porzingis had 18 points and Jaylen Brown chipped in 17 for Joe Mazzulla’s side, who took full advantage of the absence of Draymond Green, the latest Warriors injury victim after he strained his left calf on Jan 18.
“Those are some of the tricky games in the NBA, when (teams) have some star players out, other guys get a different role,” said Tatum, who added that playing with intensity was the key to the win.
“We fell victim to that a couple of times this year, so (we were) just trying to lock in from the beginning.
“Our attention to detail to start the game on the defensive end and then just our physicality. Joe said at half-time, he just felt like we were locked in and our physicality kind of dominated the game.”
Guard Jrue Holiday, who had 10 points, added: “We take things seriously and even on our worst day, we know that you have another chance to come out and play... When we play against a team like Golden State, we can come out and take care of business.”
Up by 15 at half-time, the Celtics erupted for 43 points in the third quarter.
Curry scored 18 points to lead the Warriors and Moses Moody added 13 off the bench. They were the only Golden State players to score in double figures.
The Celtics shot 53.3 per cent overall and 41.7 per cent from beyond the arc, making 20 of 48. The Warriors were held to 34.8 per cent shooting overall and 26.4 per cent from deep, connecting on just 14 of 53 tries.
“We’ve got to flush this one down the toilet,” Kerr said, calling the blowout “demoralising”.
It was just one of the lopsided results as the NBA marked the Martin Luther King Jr holiday with a day-long slate of games.
The Cavaliers romped past the Phoenix Suns in a 118-92 victory, fuelled by Donovan Mitchell’s 33 points in Cleveland.
Injury absences of Evan Mobley, Isaac Okoro and Caris LeVert did nothing to slow the Cavs, who led by as many as 32 on the way to boosting their league-best record to 36-6.
Kevin Durant scored 23 points with seven rebounds to lead the Suns, but Devin Booker – who had scored at least 30 points in the Suns’ last five games – was held to 15 points on six-of-14 shooting.
Over in New Orleans, the Pelicans authored the biggest comeback in franchise history, erasing a 25-point deficit to beat the Utah Jazz 123-119 in overtime.
C.J. McCollum scored 24 of his 45 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, and Dejounte Murray added 26 points and 11 assists for the Pelicans, who notched their fifth win in their last six games despite the absence of ailing star Zion Williamson. AFP, REUTERS
