NBA wrap: Marcus Morris, Celtics capitalize on Thunder meltdown; Hawks upset Jazz
The Celtics did not have Kyrie Irving, Marcus Smart or Jaylen Brown and it still defeated the Thunder on its home floor.
Published : Mar 21, 2018 12:26 IST
The Oklahoma City Thunder only has itself to blame for a 100-99 loss to a Kyrie Irving-less Boston Celtics team Tuesday night in Boston.
A Marcus Morris 3-pointer with less than two seconds capped an improbable comeback for the Celtics, which was down five points with 16.8 seconds to go.
NBA teams were 884-0 this season when leading by five points with less than 20 seconds to play. Oklahoma City made that record 884-1.
In addition to Irving (knee), Jaylen Brown (concussion) and Marcus Smart (thumb) were also out for the Celtics. Jayson Tatum stepped up in their absence and showed why Boston took him so high in the draft.
Tatum finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds on 8-of-12 shooting. He led the way for the Celtics which also got 17 points and six rebounds off the bench from Greg Monroe and 21 from Morris in addition to his game-winning 3-pointer.
Russell Westbrook put up solid numbers for the Thunder with 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, but his last-second shot could not give Oklahoma City a victory. Paul George added 24 points and 13 rebounds.
STUDS OF THE NIGHT
Anthony Davis had 37 points, eight rebounds and two assists in the New Orleans Pelicans' 115-105 win over the Dallas Mavericks. The win secured New Orleans a winning record for the first time since 2014-15.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 30 points and 10 rebounds on 10-of-19 shooting in the Timberwolves' 123-109 win over the Clippers.
DUD OF THE NIGHT
C.J. Miles has been a key contributor for the Toronto Raptors this season, but he wasn't much help Tuesday as he had just three points on 1-of-9 shooting in a 93-86 win over the Orlando Magic.