Boston (AP) — On Friday night, Jayson Tatum led the Boston Celtics to an easy 126-97 victory over the Utah Jazz with 30 points and five 3-pointers.
Boston scored 17 three-pointers on the evening, never trailed, and led by as many as 36 points in the first half. It was the leaders of the Eastern Conference’s eighth win in eight games.
It was Tatum’s 14th game of the season with 30 points. Adding 19 points was Kristaps Porzingis. Jrue Holiday scored 14 in the end.
Nine games in a row, the Celtics have scored 120 points or more.
Utah was on a road trip to play the top three teams in the East; their next opponents were Philadelphia and Milwaukee. The loss ended their three-game winning run. On Monday, the Jazz will host Denver, the reigning NBA champion, when they return home.
Utah came out flat against a Celtics squad that upped the tempo and drove the Jazz into fast, unbalanced shots, despite Utah tying a franchise high with 154 points in an overtime victory over Detroit on Wednesday. Utah’s shooting percentages were season lows at 36% (34 of 94) from the field and 18% from 3-point range.
Lauri Markkanen finished with five rebounds, five assists, and 17 points.
Utah turned the ball over 18 times, displaying a lapse in concentration that allowed Boston to score 26 points.
The Jazz’s road record slipped to 5–15.
Early in the game, the Celtics were the aggressors, scoring the first ten points. Utah trailed 12-2, having missed its first nine shots and had its first two of the game blocked.
Holiday’s 28-foot buzzer-beater gave Boston a 30–15 advantage at the end of the first quarter. Utah just made 1 of 12 3-pointers during the quarter, shooting only 18%.
Next up
Jazz: Play three more games away from home this Saturday night in Philadelphia.
Celtics: Saturday and Monday nights at Indiana.
