The Boston Celtics' West Coast road trip is off to a successful start.
They followed their convincing victory over the Golden State Warriors with a blowout win over the Sacramento Kings on Friday night. It was the Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown show as the C's stars combined for 62 points on 23-of-34 shooting.
Forsberg: The real reason Smart should be in spotlight after C's-Warriors
With our All Access Daily newsletter, stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Boston sports teams!
SIGN UP HERE Domantas Sabonis and Justin Holiday were the stars for Sacramento. Sabonis notched 30 points and a whopping 20 rebounds while Holiday contributed 21 points on 6-of-11 shooting from 3-point range.
Here are a few instant takeaways from the Celtics' 126-97 win, which brings their record to 43-28 and clinches at least a spot in the play-in tournament. They'll continue their trip out west with a matchup vs. the Denver Nuggets on Sunday night.
No answer for the Jays
The Kings had no answer for the Celtics' All-Star duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown from the opening tip.
It was Brown who set the tone early with 16 points in the first quarter. The 25-year-old finished with 30 points on 11-of-18 shooting for the game (3-for-5 from 3).
In the second quarter, it was all Tatum. The C's superstar tallied 17 of his 32 points in the frame and was on fire from long range all night long with seven 3s on 10 attempts.
Brown and Tatum combined for 42 points on 17-23 (7-9 3PM) shooting in the first half. The Kings as a team combined for 48 points on 17-37 (9-18 3PM) shooting.
Both Celtics stars put up 30 points in the same game for the fifth time this season. According to ESPN Stats & Info, that's the most by a pair of teammates in a season in franchise history. They surpassed Larry Bird and Kevin McHale, who had four such games in 1986-87.
Boston Celtics
Find the latest Boston Celtics news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Boston.
Payton Pritchard joins the Boston Three Party
Tatum and Brown weren't the only C's shooting the lights out in Sacramento. Payton Pritchard showed off his range in the fourth quarter to help Boston pull away with the comfortable victory.
Pritchard, who led all scorers in the fourth quarter of Wednesday's win in Golden State, carried his momentum into Friday night. The second-year guard drilled three 3-pointers in the fourth to finish a perfect 4-for-4 from beyond the arc.
Pritchard finished with 14 points and eight assists. He was a +31 in only 21 minutes.
The Celtics went 22-for-40 as a team from 3-point range. It's the sixth time in franchise history they've made at least 22 3s. The C's record for 3-pointers in a game is 25.
Third-quarter struggles continue
It's been a remarkable stretch for the Celtics, who are now 20-4 in their last 24 games. The Jays are jelling, the defense is stifling, and the supporting cast is holding up its end of the bargain. But if there's one area worth nitpicking, it's these troubling third quarters.
The third quarter has been a nightmare for Boston as of late. A defensive lapse in the third of Saturday's game briefly brought the Kings back within single digits. Sacramento kept the C's scoreless for a five-minute stretch to work its way back into the game.
In Wednesday's win over Golden State, the C's allowed a whopping 37 points in the third. Otherwise, the defense was in lockdown mode with only 17, 15, and 19 points allowed in the first, second, and fourth quarters.
A poor third quarter proved costly in Boston's loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday. The Mavs scored 38 points in the third frame after scoring 38 in the entire first half.
As well as the C's have been playing, cleaning up these odd third-quarter lapses will be pivotal as they finish off the 11 remaining regular-season games and attempt to make a deep playoff run.
