The Boston Celtics easily dispatched the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night by cruising to a 127-116 win at TD Garden.
The Celtics improved their NBA-best record to 40-16 while the lowly Hornets dropped to 15-42.
Check out the full box score here.
ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
After the Celtics hit back-to-back 3-pointers just 46 seconds into the contest, the game felt over. That’s how big of a disparity there is at the moment between the Hornets and Celtics.
The Hornets never really stood a chance, and that’s before the Celtics went on a 3-point barrage spearheaded by Derrick White to bury Charlotte.
With the Hornets barely testing the Celtics — Charlotte never led but did go on a 14-0 run in the third quarter that still didn’t get the deficit under double digits — Boston seemed to challenge itself by seeing how many trifectas it could hit. The Celtics drained 16 of them in the first half, a franchise record, and finished the contest hitting 25-for-55 (45.5%) from deep. The only two players on Boston who didn’t hit a three were Robert Williams and Luke Kornet.
Not much was learned from this win for the Celtics as they are far superior to the Hornets. But, at least they didn’t drop down to Charlotte’s level and made it entertaining with their 3-point party.
STARS OF THE GAME
— White erupted to lead the Celtics as he scored 26 of his career-high 33 points in the first half. White was on fire, especially from beyond the arc, as he hit his first eight shots. He also found time to record 10 assists, three rebounds and three blocks.
— Jayson Tatum made everything look routine as he feasted on the Hornets. The MVP candidate tallied a game-high 41 points on 13-for-21 shooting to go along with four rebounds and four assists.
— Mike Muscala made his Celtics debut after Boston acquired him in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday. Muscala showcased his strong long-range shooting by hitting four 3-pointers en route to 12 points.
WAGER WATCH
White might be taken more seriously as a 3-point shooter after this performance. DraftKings Sportsbook set White’s over/under for 3-point makes at 2.5 with +145 odds. He cleared that mark by the second quarter and hit a career-best eight triples on 14 attempts. A $100 wager on this prop bet would have netted a total of $245.
UP NEXT
The Celtics will serve as an appetizer to the Super Bowl on Sunday as they take on the Memphis Grizzlies. Tipoff from TD Garden is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET.
