– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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BOSTON — Not that the Boston Celtics would let their guard down under any circumstances, but playing an undermanned team just 24 hours before one of the most anticipated home games of the season was the perfect recipe that was on the kitchen table on Friday night. Some of the measurements in making the main course weren’t perfect, especially in the middle of cooking up their latest win, but the final result was none the less delectable.
Payton Pritchard scored 27 points with eight assists as the Celtics defeated the Toronto Raptors 125-117 inside TD Garden. Jaylen Brown added 25 points with eight rebounds and seven assists as the Celtics shot 54 percent from the field — and a scorching 62 percent in the first half to build their early lead — one night before their showdown with Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
Toronto, one of the surprise teams in the league who came into tonight just a game behind the third-place Celtics, played without leading scorer Brandon Ingram and all-everything two-way player Scottie Barnes due to injuries, and it showed early as Boston shot 65 percent from the field (15-for-23) during a 37-point first quarter.
Sam Hauser scored 12 of his 19 points in that opening frame, making four of his five three-point attempts. Anfernee Simons came off the bench and picked up where Hauser left off, scoring 11 points — making all three of his three-point attempts — with four assists in the second quarter.
Despite their opponents’ 68-point first half, the undermanned Raptors, who were down 12 seven minutes into the game, kept pace with the Celtics enough to cut a 20-point third-quarter deficit to five, 108-103, with 6:15 remaining on a Ja’Kobe Walter three. Boston responded with a 12-3 run, ending with a Derrick White three-pointer, and Boston’s lead did not drop below double digits until a Raptors’ layup with 38 seconds left.
Pritchard, Brown and White all scored in double digits in the second half, with Pritchard going for 16 points.
Walter and RJ Barrett led Toronto with 19 points, though the latter played just 27 minutes after he rolled his ankle in the fourth stepping on Hauser’s foot.
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Friday evening’s game, with photos taken by ALOST photo editor Erica Denhoff. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page, Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 23 pictures in total.
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