BOSTON – The starting five Boston trotted out for Sunday afternoon’s matchup with the Atlanta Hawks will likely be the first unit the Celtics go with when the playoffs begin next weekend.
But as we’ve seen often with the Celtics, their bench has been known to rescue them from the jaws of defeat.
Today was not one of those times as Boston’s bench could not hold on to the lead established by the first unit as the Atlanta Hawks rallied for a 112-106 win.
The Celtics led 99-92 in the fourth quarter after a 3-pointer by Semi Ojeleye, only to allow the Hawks to close out the game with an 20-7 run.
Boston had multiple chances in the closing seconds to make it a one-possession game, with none easier than the uncontested lay-up missed by Shane Larkin with about 11 or so seconds to play.
The Celtics would get no closer as the Hawks (24-57) escaped with a rare win in Boston.
Boston (54-26) began the game with the kind of strong play the Celtics were hoping would carry them all game.
Boston Celtics
After exchanging one miss for another in the game’s first few minutes, the Celtics found their groove courtesy of a 7-2 spurt that put them ahead 11-5.
Boston’s primary scoring early on was Jayson Tatum who had seven of Boston’s first 11 points. He led the Celtics with 19 points.
Having sat out Boston’s previous game, a home win over the Chicago Bulls on Friday, Tatum looked like a revived and refreshed player early on.
And he soon had company, with Al Horford, Jaylen Brown and Terry Rozier all stepping up to contribute to Boston starting to put some distance between itself and the Hawks. Horford had 16 points and seven rebounds. Brown had 12 points on 5-for-10 shooting while Rozier finished with 10 points, eight rebounds and nine assists.
Boston would end the first quarter with a comfortable 31-24 lead, fueled by a starting unit with each player having a plus/minus of at least +7 in the quarter.
Like Boston, Atlanta has also had a significantly high number of injuries to key players.
But what their current team lacks in talent, they try as best they can to make up for it in effort.
And that effort kept them within striking distance most of the first half which ended with the Celtics leading 58-49 after two quarters of play.
Like the first quarter, there were no Boston starters with a plus/minus in the negative.
Taurean Prince, one of the few regulars for the Hawks playing, was a major problem for Boston with 15 points which included a trio of 3’s. He led all players with 33 points.
Boston had a more balanced attack, with former Hawk Al Horford giving his former team the business to the tune of 14 first-half points to go with six rebounds and two assists.
In the third quarter, the Celtics continued to keep the Hawks at a distance, but nothing remotely close to blowing them away.
Prince continued his red-hot shooting while Boston continued to counter with a more balanced attack with contributions coming from several players.
And his 3-pointer with about two minutes to play cut Boston’s lead down to 73-71, only for Boston’s Terry Rozier to come back with a 3-pointer moments later.
The third quarter ended with the Celtics clinging to a 82-76 lead.