Celtics Wrap: Boston Puts Historic Beatdown On Shorthanded Nets

BOSTON — The Celtics put an absolute beatdown on the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday, coming away from TD Garden with a 139-96 victory.

The Celtics improved their league-best record to 37-15, while the Nets dropped to 31-20.

Check out the full box score here.

ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
Have you ever seen a varsity basketball team scrimmage a junior varsity basketball team? If you have, you’d know that Wednesday’s matchup between the Celtics and Nets was far less competitive.

Boston, who hasn’t lost to Brooklyn since Nov. 24, 2021, thoroughly dismantled a Nets squad that entered without Kevin Durant and Ben Simmons. A historic opening frame in which the Celtics scored 46 total points set the tone for the remainder of the game, with one play by Nets center Day’Ron Sharpe encapsulating the flow of the game in one play.

There were a number of stats that help tell the story of this boat race basketball game.

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined to go 14-for-24 from beyond the arc. The Celtics scored 79 points in the first half, their most since the 1989-90 season, according to Celtics.com’s Taylor Snow. Boston started 8-for-8 from beyond the arc. Six Celtics scored in double figures. Kyrie Irving finished as a minus-31.

This game was, quite literally, never close.

STARS OF THE GAME
— Tatum finished the night with 31 points on 12-for-19 shooting, nine rebounds and four assists. He was a game-high plus-46 in 29 minutes.

— Brown appeared to be angling for a spot in the three-point competition before NBA All-Star weekend, scoring 21 of his 26 points by way of the deep ball.

— Robert Williams III imposed his will on Brooklyn, finishing with 16 points and nine rebounds in just 19 minutes. He finished with a game-high five offensive boards.

WAGER WATCH
The Celtics entered as 8.5-point favorites over the Nets, according to DraftKings Sportsbook. Boston went up nine points less than four minutes into the first quarter, and owned a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game. At -110 odds, $100 bettors cashed out with an easy $190.91 payout.

UP NEXT
The Celtics will host the Phoenix Suns on Friday night. Tipoff from TD Garden is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.