Playing on the second leg of a back-to-back, the Boston Celtics dug deep down the stretch to pull off a 113-105 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night at State Farm Arena.
Another monster performance from Kyrie Irving, along with an important nine-point fourth quarter from Jaylen Brown off the bench, allowed the Celtics to steal one after trailing most of the night.
Irving finished with 32 points, while Jayson Tatum followed with 19. Brown ended up with 14, while Al Horford was also in double digits with 13. Terry Rozier had nine points off the bench with a team-high 11 rebounds.
With the win, the Celtics climb to 28-18, while the Hawks fall to 14-31.
Here’s how it all went down:
STARTING FIVE
PG: Kyrie Irving
SG: Marcus Smart
SF: Jayson Tatum
PF: Marcus Morris
C: Al Horford
C’S STRUGGLE ON D
The Hawks were able to get their offense going early and the Celtics had little answer in their defensive half, as Atlanta sunk to 14-of-26 from the floor to take a 36-28 lead after the opening 12 minutes.
After the Hawks took an early lead, the Celtics never were able to climb within six points, as the deficit climbed to double digits. Omari Spellman hit a three-pointer to make it 27-16 with 3:49 left in the quarter. Atlanta’s advantage grew to as many as 13 when Kevin Huerter sunk a layup to make it 31-18 with 2:25 to go in the quarter.
Boston narrowed the deficit in the final minute, with Kyrie Irving converting on a 3-point play to make it an eight-point game heading into the second stanza.
KYRIE KEEPS IT CLOSE
A 15-point quarter from Irving was not enough to push the Celtics to a halftime lead, but the star guard’s effort kept things within reach as Atlanta took a 67-60 lead into the break.
The Hawks went on a 14-4 run to give them their biggest edge of the half, leading 50-34 with 8:55 left and forcing Brad Stevens into using a full timeout.
The Celtics chipped away, going on a 10-2 run over the next 3:54, capped off by a monster pull-up three from Irving that made it 52-44 with 5:01 to go in the half.
The final minute was a three fest. Alex Len drained a trey to make it 64-54, but was answered by Irving who nailed a triple of his own. Trae Young clapped back with another triple, but once again it was Irving responding, capping his monster first half with a 30-foot bomb to send the C’s to the room trailing by seven.
CELTICS BUCKLE DOWN
Looking for a spark after a flat first half, the Celtics buckled down on defense, claiming the third quarter 23-22 and heading into the fourth down 89-83.
Irving kept his hot hand going in the second half, draining Boston’s only points in the first three minutes of the quarter. Atlanta, however, built the lead back up to double digits. A Marcus Smart technical foul allowed the Hawks to make it 76-65 with 8:43 to go in the quarter.
Smart took his second technical before a jump ball after jawing with DeAndre Bembry, which led to a brief skirmish between the two.
The Hawks were able to maintain their lead for the rest of the quarter, but three-straight buckets from the Celtics to close the quarter made it a six-point game heading into the fourth.
BOSTON STEALS IT
After trailing most of the evening, a shutdown fourth quarter in which Boston outscored the Hawks 30-16, led to the Celtics marching on to an important road win.
The Celtics got out to a 12-4 run to start the quarter, taking their first lead since 3-2 in the first quarter when Brown sunk a three to make it 95-93 with 9:07 to play.
The team traded baskets the next two minutes, with Boston clinging to a 101-100 lead with 5:23 to play after an Irving layup.
Both teams went the next 3:36 without a field goal, with Horford making it 105-100 after two trips to the line. Tatum tossed in a put-back attempt with 1:47 to go to make it 107-100.
The Hawks faded in the closing minutes, with Boston building the lead up to double digits.
PLAY OF THE GAME
Scary stuff from Terry with the steal and the slam.
UP NEXT
The Celtics will return home Monday to host the Miami Heat. Tip-off from TD Garden is set for 6 p.m. ET.
