Tatum is first player to accomplish this feat in 2021-22 season

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Jayson Tatum was a man on a mission in Sunday's game between the Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards.

The Celtics All-Star snapped out of his shooting slump and dropped 31 points in the first half. He shot 11-for-14 from the field and 6-of-7 from 3-point range.

That makes Tatum the first NBA player to score 30 or more points in the first half of a game this season, per stats guru Dick Lipe.

The performance was an emphatic statement from Tatum, who entered Sunday shooting 0 for his last 20 from beyond the arc. His six first-half 3-pointers were more than he had made in his previous six games combined.

Despite the shooting woes, Tatum has found a way to be among the league's top scorers in 2021-22. He went into Sunday's game averaging 25.2 points, the 10th-highest mark in the NBA.

Tatum finished with 51 points on 18 of 28 shooting (9 of 14 from three) in Boston's 116-87 rout of the Wizards.

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