Jaylen Brown scored 27 points and Jayson Tatum finished with 25 to lead the visiting Boston Celtics to a 122-102 victory over the Washington Wizards on Thursday night.
Tatum also had 11 rebounds and six assists in the win. Boston led by as many as 32 points in the second half.
The Celtics were 17 of 45 from behind the 3-point arc after tying an NBA record by making 29 3-pointers in a season-opening win against the New York Knicks on Tuesday night. Boston’s Payton Pritchard connected on five of his 10 3-point attempts and finished with 15 points. Derrick White made four 3-pointers and added 19 points for the Celtics.
It was the season opener for Washington, which got a team-high 26 points from Jordan Poole. Jonas Valanciunas (18) and Kyle Kuzma (12) also scored in double figures for the Wizards, who were 7-of-36 on 3-point attempts.
Washington’s Alex Sarr, the No. 2 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, finished the game with two points and five rebounds in 22 minutes. He shot 1-of-7 from the field.
A 12-0 run gave the Wizards a 19-12 lead with 5:56 left in the first quarter, but the Celtics led 33-32 after 12 minutes. Poole played eight minutes in the quarter and scored 17 points.
Boston closed the second quarter with a 15-3 run and had a 64-54 advantage at halftime. Tatum had 20 points and nine rebounds in the half.
The Celtics took over early in the third quarter. Boston scored 16 of its 20 points in the third to extend its lead to 80-58 with 6:39 left in the quarter. Boston outscored Washington 34-19 in the third and led 98-73 entering the fourth.
Sam Hauser did not play for the Celtics due to back pain. Hauser scored 10 points in Boston’s opener against the Knicks. Big man Neemias Queta tallied 12 points and seven rebounds in 14 minutes.
–Field Level Media
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