Full game highlights from the Celtics’ 132-123 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Boston Celtics wrapped up a perfect trip out west with a win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night.
It was a mostly dominant performance for the C's until the fourth quarter, when the Thunder went on a run to cut the deficit to single digits. Ultimately, the C's were able to hold them off and earn a 132-123 victory to complete a 4-0 road trip.
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SIGN UP HERE Jayson Tatum, the NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week, continued to play at an MVP level with 34 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Jaylen Brown added 25 points while Grant Williams and Payton Pritchard added 20 and 18, respectively.
Tre Mann did most of the damage for Oklahoma City with 35 points to set the Thunder rookie scoring record. The 21-year-old went 7-for-11 from a 3-point range. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander contributed 31 points and nine assists for OKC.
Here are a few takeaways from the Celtics' win, which brings their record to 45-28 and makes them tied for the second seed in the Eastern Conference. They'll return home to take on the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night.
Grant "Batman" Williams steps up
With Marcus Smart and Robert Williams both absent for the second night of a back-to-back, the Celtics needed a hero. Luckily, they have Batman on their side.
Grant Williams got the start and made the most of his opportunity. A night after nicknaming himself "Batman" for his performance vs. "the Joker" Nikola Jokic, Williams put up career-highs in points (20, including 10 in the first quarter) and rebounds (10). His previous career-high for points was 18, which he tallied four times this season.
"It felt pretty good," Williams said about achieving a new career-high in points. "I was just hoping that, you know, (Daniel) Theis and them were joking on me saying, 'It's gonna happen again, 18.' I guess the last rebound helped it out so it worked out in the end."
If Williams keeps this up, his Celtics teammates will have no choice but to embrace the Batman moniker. By the looks of it, Al Horford already is.
Payton Pritchard stays hot from 3
What a road trip it was for Payton Pritchard, who's been one of the hottest 3-point shooters in the NBA over the last week.
Pritchard notched double-digit points in all four of the Celtics' games out west. He finished off the trip with 18 points in 25 minutes off the bench, drilling five of his 11 3-point attempts.
Over the Celtics' last four games, Pritchard is 16-for-26 from beyond the arc. The second-year point guard is shooting 40.3% from 3 this season, tying him for 23rd in the league.
The Jays firing on all cylinders
The bad news: Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown failed to make it three consecutive games with 30+ points apiece. The good news: They're still playing at a ridiculously high level.
Tatum had his third straight game with at least 30 points, tallying a game-high 36 to go with seven rebounds and six assists. The 24-year-old shot 11-for-19 from the field (5-11 from 3) as he made his case for Eastern Conference Player of the Month honors.
Brown was just as efficient as his fellow Celtics star with 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting. While Tatum knocked down the 3s, Brown earned most of his points by attacking the basket.
Off night for the elite C's defense
This was not a banner night for the No. 1 rated Celtics defense. After leading by as many as 26 points, Boston let its foot off the gas late and saw the deficit shrink to single digits in the fourth quarter. Oklahoma City scored a whopping 72 points in the second half.
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The Celtics allowed the lowly Thunder to shoot 51.6% from the field and 45.9% on 3s. Perhaps the blame can be placed on it behind the last leg of the road trip and the second night of a back-to-back. It also doesn't help that Marcus Smart and Robert Williams were out. Regardless, they'll need to clean it up before they return home to TD Garden on Wednesday.
