BOSTON KEEP ON ROLLING
Celtics cruise past Lakers for 10th straight win
THE injury-riddled Boston Celtics won their 10th straight game by cruising to a 107-96 win Wednesday over the Los Angeles Lakers in a matchup between two of the NBA’s most storied franchises.
Australia’s Aron Baynes scored a career high 21 points during the game which saw the Celtics compile a 21 point first-half lead before the Lakers closed the gap in the third.
But Los Angeles allowed the Celtics to pull away again in the fourth when it mattered most.
The 30-year-old Baynes, who was born in New Zealand but grew up in Cairns, Australia, also grabbed eight rebounds and had three assists in front of a crowd of 18,600 at the Boston Garden.
“We have such great creators on this team,” said Baynes, a member of the Australian national team.
“I just found myself in the right position. I was just trying to make the right play, and I’m trying to finish as best I could.
“It’s a compliment to the other guys on the team getting me the ball in great position.”
Boston’s Kyrie Irving overcame a poor shooting night to finish with 19 points, six rebounds and five assists.
But the banged-up Celtics are the hottest team in the NBA for a reason. They are getting contributions from everyone with different players stepping up each game.
On Wednesday it was Baynes’ turn along with Marcus Morris, who had 18 points, and Terry Rozier who added 14 points and eight rebounds.
Brandon Ingram scored 18 points for the Lakers, who were guilty of 21 turnovers.
Elsewhere, Nikola Vucevic scored 24 points and Evan Fournier had 23 to help the Orlando Magic halt a two-game losing streak with a 112-99 win over the New York Knicks, who were without injured star Kristaps Porzingis.
Porzingis sat out with a left ankle sprain and a bruised right elbow. He is averaging 30 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.3 blocks while shooting 51 per cent from the field.
In Detroit, Tobias Harris had 23 points and eight rebounds to help the Detroit Pistons win for the sixth time in seven games, downing the Indiana Pacers 11497.