Celtics' stars shine as Boston bounces back in Game 4 win over Magic
Published in Basketball
ORLANDO, Fla. — Despite being 1,200 miles away from TD Garden, Jayson Tatum heard familiar chants as he stepped to the foul line late in Sunday’s playoff game.
“MVP. MVP. MVP.”
The Celtics star delivered a performance worthy of those cheers, racking up 37 points, 14 rebounds, three assists and three steals as Boston defeated the Magic 107-98 at the Kia Center to take a 3-1 lead in its best-of-seven first-round series. Sixteen of his points came in the fourth quarter, helping the Celtics pull away in the final four minutes.
Co-star Jaylen Brown also notched a double-double with 21 points and 11 rebounds, plus two steals, and Kristaps Porzingis bounced back after struggling in the Celtics’ Game 3 loss, finishing with 19 points and five rebounds despite foul trouble that limited him to 22 minutes. Derrick White added 18 points, seven assists and seven rebounds, and Al Horford — starting in place of an injured Jrue Holiday — blocked five shots in the win, which pushed the seventh-seeded Magic to the brink of elimination.
The Celtics can advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals with a win Tuesday night in Boston.
After attempting a season-low 27 3-pointers in Game 3, the Celtics seemed to make upping that number a priority early in Sunday’s game. They put up six threes in the opening four minutes, including a Tatum pull-up in transition. They misfired on all of those, however, and instead relied on shots much closer to the basket to power their early-game offense.
Boston’s first six made field goals came in the paint, and five of those were at or near the rim, including three Porzingis dunks. The latter was a positive development for the Celtics, who wanted to get the big man more involved after he turned in one of his worst performances of the season in Game 3.
Another plus for Boston was the play of Sam Hauser, who was held scoreless in each of the Celtics’ first three playoff games while attempting just four total shots. Hauser launched two 3-pointers late in the first quarter and made both to help the Celtics climb out of an early eight-point deficit. (Those were the only six points Boston’s bench scored in the game.)
The Celtics got more contributions from both players early in the second. Porzingis fed a nifty give-and-go pass to White for a tough and-one layup, drew another foul on the ensuing possession and then hit his first 3-pointer of the postseason, snapping an 0 for 11 drought from beyond the arc. He also deflected a Cole Anthony pass in the Celtics’ end, and Hauser dove on it to force a turnover.
With five minutes remaining in the first half, Porzingis had 13 points, and the Celtics held a 46-38 lead. Then he was whistled for an offensive foul while setting a screen for Tatum, and the Magic seized momentum.
Porzingis was confident he did not deserve the whistle, emphatically gesturing for Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla to challenge the foul. The officials disagreed. Boston lost its challenge, Porzingis headed to the bench with three fouls and Orlando ripped off a 10-0 run that featured three Celtics turnovers to tie the game.
Boston was able to regain its footing thanks to some timely defensive plays by White. The Celtics guard denied Wendell Carter Jr. at the rim to foil a 4-on-1 Magic break, then poked the ball away from Banchero while the Magic star drove for a would-be layup. Boston closed the half on a 7-0 run, capped by a Tatum 3-pointer with 6.1 seconds remaining, and took a 53-48 lead into the locker room.
The Celtics’ frustration with what they’ve viewed as over-the-top physicality from Orlando boiled over early in the third quarter. After Carter dropped White with a hip check on a fast break, Horford sprinted in to confront the Magic center. Tatum and officials had to separate the two, and Carter’s play was reviewed for what would have been Orlando’s fourth flagrant foul of the series. Referee Mark Davis ruled it did not meet that criteria, leaving it as a common foul.
Porzingis sat for the first 5:07 of the second half, with Luke Kornet replacing him in the top unit. He hit a three and tallied a steal after returning, then was called back to the bench after picking up his fourth foul with 3:57 to play in the third quarter. He committed his fifth two minutes into the fourth.
Fouls were an issue for Payton Pritchard, too. The Celtics guard was called for loose ball fouls after missed Magic shots late in the first and third quarters, gifting Orlando four free throws. Anthony Black’s foul shots in the final minute of the third cut Boston’s lead to 79-75 entering the final quarter.
The Celtics were able to maintain that cushion for the first seven minutes of the fourth, getting seven points from Tatum, five from White and a powerful block from Horford to keep Orlando at bay. But the Magic eventually equalized on a 3-pointer by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and a Carter tip-in, tying the game at 91-91 with 4:18 remaining.
That’s when Mazzulla reinserted Porzingis, and he immediately restored the Celtics’ lead, missing a gimme at the rim but drawing a foul on his own putback dunk. Free throws by Brown on the next Boston possession made it 95-91.
Horford then was called for a delay-of-game technical foul on an Orlando inbounds pass — an unusual call in that situation — but the Celtics got a stop, and Tatum scored on their next two trips down the floor. He hit a fadeaway over Banchero, then took contact from his fellow Duke alum on an errant 3-pointer and made all three free throws.
Yet another Horford block and a clutch offensive rebound by Pritchard helped Boston finish off its underdog hosts. Tatum sank four more foul shots in the final minute while the emptying crowd, which featured a sizable contingent of Celtics fans at both games this weekend, cheered him on.
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