Celtics Wrap: Boston Wins Game 1 Behind Jayson Tatum’s Heroics

Jayson Tatum finished on a buzzer-beater to lift the No. 2 Boston Celtics over the No. 7 Brooklyn Nets in a 115-114 victory during Game 1 at TD Garden.

Boston took a 1-0 advantage over Brooklyn in the best-of-seven series.

You can check out the full box score here.

ONE KEY TAKEAWAY
The Celtics picked up where they left off in the regular season with defense showing up early. But despite forcing 16 turnovers with five blocks, the Nets still managed to shoot 53.8% from the field. Nets superstar forward Kevin Durant had to work especially hard for his 23 points, shooting 9-for-24 from the field with a game-high six turnovers.

The Celtics’ ball movement and second-chance points stood out in the game, on top of the aforementioned relentless defense. After the two teams were tied 61-all at halftime, Boston’s nine-point run in the third quarter created separation between the two sides for the first time. There were 17 lead changes in the first half before the Celtics took over in the third.

The Nets erased a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter as the Celtics completely folded to start the final frame while the Nets star duo, Durant and Kyrie Irving, heated up.

Fortunately for Boston, the No. 1 ranked defense showed up in the end, forcing a bad shot from Durant with the shot clock expiring, which led to Jayson Tatum’s game-winning lay-in.

STARS OF THE GAME
— Jayson Tatum scored a team-high 31 points on 9-for-18 from the field. The star forward added eight assists, four assists and one steal as well. He also put the finishing touches on the last-second victory.

— Al Horford recorded a double-double of 20 points and 15 rebounds, adding two assists on top of it. Horford was extremely efficient, going 8-for-13 from the field and 2-for-2 from beyond the arc.

— Kyrie Irving was tasked with going into hostile territory and putting on a show, and that’s exactly what the Ex-Celtic did. He scored 39 points, shot 12-for-20, and made some highly-contested shots in the process. Irving put up an eight-point run to cut the Celtics’ lead to one in the fourth quarter.

WAGER WATCH
The Celtics’ buzzer-beater earned Boston a win on the moneyline, but the hosts were not able to cover the four-point spread. Betting against the spread had -125 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. A $100 bet on the Nets would have paid out $180.

UP NEXT
The Celtics return to TD Garden for Game 2 on Wednesday as they continue their series with the Nets, tip off is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET and will be aired on TNT.