BOSTON (AP) – Jillian Brown scored 32 points, Jason Tatum had 22, and the Boston Celtics beat the Washington Wizards 144-102 in their regular-season home final on Sunday.
Jockey for one of the top picks at the Eastern Conference, Boston posted its 13th win in 16 games with three games remaining in the regular season.
Derrick White added 17 points, Grant Williams 16 and Payton Pritchard 14 for the Celtics, who finished 28-13 at TD Garden. Tatum had seven assists and six rebounds, with Brown adding seven boards with five assists.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Kristaps Porzingis each had 17 points for Washington and Ish Smith finished with 16 points.
Excluded from the playoffs earlier this week, the Wizards have won four of five.
Disillusioned by Washington’s lack of challenge, the spectators began to wave in the final quarter, which is rarely seen in home games.
Boston opened a double-digit lead in Tatam’s driving layout late in the first quarter and was never tested.
The Celtics, who scored 35 points each in the first two quarters, scored 13 points after one quarter and 11 points at half time.
They pushed the lead to 20-80-60 in Al Harford’s 3 from the top three minutes into the second half.
Boston led by 25 points after three quarters, allowing coach Ime Udoka to rest his starters.
Experimenting
Before the game, Vodka said he was most concerned about how his team was performing in the playoffs.
“It’s a balance, we think about ourselves and how we play more than the opponent and where we fall,” he said.
Even after center Robert Williams III lost for 4-to-6 weeks after his left knee surgery on March 30, he plans to try different lineups.
“We need to look at the rotations and see what works best for us to move forward,” he said.
As the father, so is the son
Before the game, Tatum warmed up, slowly jogging with a resistance band around his waist.
Tip-INS
Wizards: A three-game road swing opened on Sunday. জি After a relatively bad start, Porzings scored the last eight points of the Wizards in the first half.
Celtics: Tatum did not play in the final quarter and Brown watched only a few minutes. …Vodoka said Tatum checked his right knee to see if he could play, since he missed a game on March 26 in Toronto. “It’s been like that in the last few games,” the coach said. … Marcus addressed the crowd before the game on Smart Fan Appreciation Day, thanking them “for being the best sixth person you can ask for”.
Coming next
Wizards: Tuesday at the Timberwolves.
Celtics: Wednesday at the Bulls.
(Copyright (c) 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
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