Kyrie Irving has been a force for the Celtics all season, and that trend continued Saturday night.
Boston erased a 17-point deficit late in the game to overcome the Memphis Grizzlies and earn a 112-103 victory at FedEx Forum, and no player had a bigger night than Irving. The guard put up 26 points, 13 assists and five rebounds in 35 minutes on the court.
Irving’s double-double, however, is part of what made his night so impressive. This is the second time he’s put up consecutive 20-point double-doubles — something the 26-year-old never had done in his seven previous seasons in the NBA. It also was Irving’s third consecutive game with a double-double.
But most of the guard’s points came in the second half after amassing just four points in the first two quarters. So what changed after the break?
“I told the Memphis bench as well, I said, ‘(there’s) two halves to this,'” Irving told NBC Sports Boston’s Kyle Draper on the network’s postgame coverage. “‘You guys are doing a great job for the first half but for the second half I’m gonna take advantage of everything you guys were showing us in the first half.'”
Here are some other notes from Saturday’s Celtics-Grizzlies game:
— This was Boston’s sixth straight win against the Grizzlies. The win also moved the C’s to 10-9 on the road.
— Head coach Brad Stevens had a lot of praise for Guerschon Yabusele, who nailed down a 3-pointer for the C’s.
"I thought Guerschon's play was a big reason why we won the game" – Brad Stevens
— Dan Greenberg (@StoolGreenie) December 30, 2018
— Marcus Morris was the only other Celtic to reach 20-plus points (22). Al Hordford (18) and Gordon Hayward (14) all scored in double figures for Boston.
“(Morris) is part of the anchor,” Irving told Draper when asked how important Morris is to the team. “Marcus Smart, Marcus Morris, Al, myself, (Jayson Tatum), (Jaylen Brown). Everybody’s part of this big anchor that we have driving this ship.”
— The C’s have won three of their last four games and will look to make it two in a row with a New Year’s Eve date with the San Antonio Spurs.
