Tatum’s 53 helps Celts survive
Need OT to get past Timberwolves
When last on the road, the Celtics returned home with back-to-back wins over Milwaukee and Oklahoma City, and the comforting promise of a season-long seven-game home stand awaiting them.
The experience was rougher and more excruciating than expected. But when the Celtics wrapped up the stretch with Friday’s 145-136 overtime win over Minnesota — a game, like the others, that found the Celtics at their best and worst defensively — they had least salvaged the 4-3 homestand.
They head out again, this time for road games in Denver, Portland and Los Angeles against the Lakers. But at 27-26, they are also over .500 for the first time since March 16.
They struggled early against the Timberwolves duo of Karl-Anthony Towns (30 points, 12 rebounds) and Anthony Edwards (24 points), but Jayson Tatum’s explosion for a career-high 53 points (16-for-25), and a bruising overall game from Marcus Smart (23 points, eight assists) fueled a comeback from a 17-point third quarter hole.
Kemba Walker also recovered from a 1-for-7 first half to turn in a near-triple double with 17 points, nine assists and seven rebounds.
Tatum missed a step-back 17-footer against a double team at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime in a 124-124 tie.
The Celtics opened the extra session with misses from Walker and Jaylen Brown, but Smart drew a charge on Towns, and Tatum dunked off a backdoor bullet pass from Rob Williams. Towns took the lead back from downtown, Walker missed, Towns missed, and Brown nailed a corner trey for a 129-127 Celtics lead.
Russell missed, Smart tipped the rebound to Tatum, and with 2:33 left Walker hit from downtown for a 132-127 lead.
Russell posted Walker for two, but Walker hit from the corner for a 135-129 Celtics edge with 1:48 left.
Russell broke free and at the expense of Brown converted a three-point play with 1:44 left in overtime, cutting the C’s lead to three.
But Tatum, isolated on Towns, was fouled attempting a 3-pointer and with 1:25 left hit all three for a 138-132 Celtics lead.
Russell missed, Tatum won the rebound, and with 47.6 seconds left Walker drove and found Tristan Thompson for a 140-132 lead.
Edwards scored with 45 seconds left, but Smart was fouled and hit one of two. Brown was fouled the next time down with 29.7 seconds left and hit both for a 143-136 lead.
Smart finished it off by stealing a Russell pass.
The Celtics had a 122-113 lead in the fourth quarter, but back-to-back 3-pointers from Towns and DeAngelo Russell, trimmed the Celtics lead to 122-119 with 1:29 remaining.
Tatum put up a late-clock airball, handing the ball back to Minnesota with 1:05 left, and Russell blew by Grant Williams for a layup.
But a Jaden McDaniels miss was what the Celtics desperately needed, with Walker grabbing the rebound and hitting Tatum for the fast break hoop and a 124-121 lead with 17.3 seconds left.
But Russell, guarded well by Grant Williams, banked a game-tying 3-pointer with 8.6 seconds left.
Tatum took the ball at the top of the circle and missed a step-back 17-foot attempt against a double team.
Tatum’s 17-point third quarter, combined with some mayhem-inducing hustle from Smart, cut the Minnesota lead all the way from a peak of 17 points down to five (97-92) by the end of the quarter.
Walker, 1-for-8 to this point, finished off a tough possession from 15 feet to start the fourth, and came back with a 3-pointer for a 9797 tie that Juancho Hernangomez wiped out from downtown.
Pritchard drove to cut the margin to a point, and Walker also drove, was fouled, and hit twice for a 101-100 lead with 8:21 left.
Grant Williams’ pressure forced a Towns airball and shot clock violation, but Walker missed in the same fashion. Grant Williams’ steal and out of bounds save on the next possession set up a Pritchard three for a 104-100 Celtics lead with 6:53 left, with Williams also assisting from under the basket on the play.
Anthony Edwards missed from downtown, and Tatum buried a 3-pointer off a Brown kick-out. Towns scored, but Brown hit a tough step-back from the baseline. Towns hit from downtown as the pace accelerated, and Tatum buried his fifth bomb of the night for a 112-105 lead.
Towns, fouled by Tristan Thompson going after his own miss with 4:40 left, cut the Celtics margin to five (112107) with two free throws.
Smart’s open trey was good for a 115-107 lead, and the next time down Tatum hit trey No. 6 for a 118-107 edge.