BOSTON — The Celtics opened up the playoffs in dominating fashion, routing the Atlanta Hawks, 112-99, on Saturday afternoon at TD Garden.
With the win, the Celtics hold a 1-0 series lead in their first-round matchup with the Hawks.
Check out the full box score here.
ONE BIG TAKEAWAY
It’s very seldom that expectations meet reality. But that was case in Game 1.
The seventh-seeded Hawks weren’t expected to give the No. 2 Celtics much resistance and Boston made it look easy as they annihilated Atlanta to go up in the series.
Boston picked apart the Hawks’ defense time and time again to run away with things early. The Celtics outscored Atlanta, 45-25, in the second quarter to open a 30-point lead (74-44) by halftime. It tied the largest postseason halftime lead for the Celtics in franchise history, according to ESPN Stats and Info.
The Celtics got whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted. Even though they are a 3-point shooting team, the Celtics got into the paint with ease, which then led to open shots from beyond the arc. And it wasn’t just the Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown show as the Celtics had a multitude of contributors.
The Hawks couldn’t get much going on the other end either as the Celtics swallowed up Trae Young while the Hawks shot a putrid 5-for-29 (17.2%) from 3-point range.
If Boston can replicate this showing, they’ll quickly be moving on to the next round of the playoffs.
STARS OF THE GAME
— Jaylen Brown didn’t seem bothered one bit by his hand ailment after he had stitches removed from the area Thursday. The Celtics star totaled a game-high 29 points while recording 12 rebounds for a double-double.
— Robert Williams gave the Celtics the initial spark they needed by making an impact on both ends of the floor. Williams turned in arguably his best performance of the season with 12 points on a perfect 6-for-6 shooting to go along with eight rebounds, two assists and one highlight-reel block.
— Derrick White turned in a sensational effort by hitting 4-of-7 3-pointers to finish with 24 points. White also registered seven assists, five rebounds and two blocks.
WAGER WATCH
Rebounding was a key for the Celtics heading into the matchup, and FanDuel Sportsbook set Al Horford’s over/under for rebounds at 5.5 with -132 odds on the Over. Horford tallied nine rebounds to hit the Over, meaning a $100 bet would have netted a total of $175.76.
UP NEXT
The Celtics and Hawks resume their best-of-seven series on Tuesday. Tipoff for Game 2 from TD Garden is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
