Tatum scores 53, lifts Boston to OT victory
All-star youngest Celtic with 50-point game
BOSTON — Jayson Tatum scored a career-high 53 points — including 18 in the fourth quarter and overtime — and the Boston Celtics held on to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 145-136 on Friday.
It was the first 50-point game for the All-star, who eclipsed his previous high of 41. At age 23, Tatum became the youngest Celtics player with a 50-point game.
Jaylen Brown had 26 points and Marcus Smart 24 points, eight assists and six rebounds for Boston, which erased a 17-point third-quarter deficit and led by eight in the fourth.
Karl-anthony Towns had 30 points and 12 rebounds, D’angelo Russell 26 points and Anthony Edwards 24 points for the Timberwolves.
■ Pelicans 101, 76ers 94: At New Orleans, Zion Williamson scored 14 of his 37 points in the fourth quarter and added 15 rebounds and eight assists for New Orleans. Joel Embiid mustered 14 points on 5-for-16 shooting for Philadelphia, which matched its season scoring low.
■ Hornets 127, Bucks 119: At Milwaukee, Miles Bridges had 26 points to lead five scorers with at least 18 points for Charlotte (27-24), which is three games over .500 for the first time since January 2017. Milwaukee was without all five of its usual starters.
■ Nuggets 121, Spurs 119: At
Denver, Nikola Jokic had 26 points, 14 assists and 13 rebounds for Denver, which didn’t trail in its eighth straight win. Demar Derozan’s tip try at the buzzer spun out for San Antonio, which trailed by 18 in the first half.
■ Knicks 133, Grizzlies 129, OT: At New York, R.J. Barrett hit a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 1:15 left in overtime and totaled 20 points for New York, which trailed by 13 midway through the fourth quarter but halted Memphis’ four-game win streak.
■ Wizards 110, Warriors 107: At San Francisco, Bradley Beal scored six of his 20 points in the final 6.1 seconds for Washington, and Russell Westbrook had 19 points, 14 assists and 14 rebounds in his league-best 21st triple-double.
■ Pacers 111, Magic 106: At Orlando, Fla., Domantas Sabonis had 16 points, 15 rebounds and six assists in his return from a three-game injury absence for Indiana, which improved to 20-6 when leading after three quarters.
■ Clippers 126, Rockets 109: At Los Angeles, Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points and Reggie Jackson 26 for Los Angeles, which trailed by 14 in the second quarter before going on a 41-9 run in its fourth straight win.
■ Hawks 120, Bulls 108: At Atlanta, Trae Young scored 42 points for Atlanta, which halted Chicago’s three-game win streak. Zach Lavine scored 39 of his career-high 50 points in the first half for the Bulls.