(Photo courtesy of Celticsblog.com) “Jaylen Brown scores a basket against Hornets.”
Shaan Baid
Connector Staff
The Boston Celtics have clicked on all cylinders this preseason. After beating the New York Knicks and Charlotte Hornets, Boston concludes their preseason going 4-1.
It all started on Oct. 17 when the Knicks came into TD Garden. Boston displayed its offensive firepower in a 123-110 victory. The Celtics offense exploded with a flurry of three-pointers, connecting on 23 of 52 attempts.
Boston dominated in the first half as they led 78-60. The three-pointing shooting set the tone on offense. New York showed a bit of resistance in the third quarter, outscoring Boston 28-22, but Boston easily pulled away in the fourth quarter.
However, this wasn’t their best performance on defense. Boston gave up 88 points throughout the first three quarters, allowing New York to stay in the game despite a hot shooting night. They did a much better job in the fourth quarter, limiting the Knicks offense to just 22 points.
Superstar forward Jayson Tatum led the way with 28 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists in 30 minutes. Star center Kristaps Porzingis shined with 20 points and 8 rebounds in just 28 minutes. Also, Boston got solid contributions from small forwards Jaylen Brown, Sam Hauser, and point guards Jrue Holiday and Payton Pritchard.
For New York, shooting guard Quenton Grimes put up a valiant effort in the loss with 22 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists in 26 minutes.
On Oct. 19, Boston had arguably its best performance of the preseason, demolishing the Hornets 127-99 in Spectrum Center. This was Boston’s most complete game of the season. Unlike the previous game, Boston’s defense dominated the game by holding Charlotte to 42.0 percent field goal shooting and just 14.3 percent from beyond the arc. They also had a franchise record of 22 steals.
The C’s set the tone in the first quarter with a commanding 34-19 start. Boston continued to dominate in the second and third quarters, going up 100-65. While Charlotte’s offense woke up in the fourth quarter, it was too little too late as Boston was easily able to hold on for the win.
After a solid outing against New York, Jaylen Brown followed it up as the star of the show against Charlotte. In just 23 minutes, he had 20 points (8-12 FG, 4-5 3-PT), four rebounds, an assist, and a steal. The two-time All-Star seems to be comfortable in this offense, thanks to Holiday and Porzingis taking pressure off of him.
