Celtics Ride Hot Fourth to 113-104 Victory Over Pistons

For the second consecutive time the Boston Celtics found themselves locked in a dogfight with the Detroit Pistons. Unlike last time, the Celtics came out on top using a late run to secure a 113-104 victory on the road. It was the Celtics 11th win in their last 12 games. The one loss came to this Pistons team 112-111 on Feb. 16.

THE BREAKDOWN

There’s wasn’t a lot of flow to this game and neither team was able to distance itself through 3 quarters. The game featured 21 lead changes and 17 ties. Boston outscored Detroit 35-22 in the final frame to push them over the Pistons. Jaylen Brown (27 pts) and Jayson Tatum (26 pts) led the way for Boston but shot only a combined 18-of-45 from the field. The Celtics got strong bench contributions from Payton Pritchard and Grant Williams The win pushes the Celtics to 36-26.

STUDS AND DUDS

STUDS

Payton Pritchard: Who saw this coming? For the first time since January 14, Payton Pritchard dropped double-digit points off the bench, scoring 19 points on 8-12 shooting. He made three of his five threes.

Pritchard was also active in sharing the ball, dishing six assists. His playmaking and shooting late helped spark the run Boston needed to secure the win.

Grant Williams: Not to be outdone by his fellow bench-mate, Williams also put in an admirable performance. Williams poured in 13 points on an efficient 4-6 shooting, and helped to maintain the energy defensively. He also grabbed four rebounds and handed out three assists.

Cade Cunningham: The Rookie of the Year candidate had the Celtics sweating. Despite early foul trouble, Cunningham finished with 25 points and seven boards. He shot an effective 11-19 from the floor.

DUDS

Jerami Grant: His shooting in particular set Detroit back going a putrid 3-15 from the floor overall and failing to make any of his six threes.

Derrick White: White was pretty much a no show in this one. The newly acquired Celtics guard logged only 20 minutes for a second straight game. White scored only 3 points on 1-3 shooting, with 3 assists and an uncharacteristic 3 turnovers.

TURNING POINT

In a back-and-forth game, it was a late run that put Boston up for good. The Celtics trailed 88-85 early in the fourth, before a 15-2 run gave Boston a 100-90 lead with just over five minutes in the fourth. They’d hold off a late run from Detroit to ride that cushion to victory.

SO THAT HAPPENED…

As the Celtics broadcast mentioned, it was an early start for the officials too. A particularly questionable call came midway through the second quarter, when Pistons’ guard Hamidou Diallo was given a technical foul and ejected for what was deemed “intentional contact” on a referee.

Intentional contact, or trying to keep his balance? You decide.

THAT’S WHAT HE SAID

Coach Ime Udoka didn’t shy away from applauding Pritchard’s impact and effort after the game. “We stuck with him. He was playing well, guarding well, making shots, and being aggressive … We’re very confident in him.”

SWEAT THE BET

Boston just missed the cover for Betonline.ag’s -10.5 spread for the favored Celtics. Over bettors barely walked out as winners, two points above the 215 over/under.