In Toronto, Jaylen Brown and Derrick White propelled the Boston Celtics to a triumphant 111-101 win over the Toronto Raptors, marking their sixth consecutive victory. Brown contributed 24 points, while White added 22, showcasing the Celtics’ strong performance. Payton Pritchard added to the scoreline with 20 points, and Jayson Tatum delivered 19 points complemented by 11 assists, helping the Celtics maintain their impressive 24-6 road record.
For the Raptors, RJ Barrett and Scottie Barnes made notable contributions, scoring 22 and 21 points respectively, although it wasn’t enough to prevent Toronto from suffering their seventh loss in nine games. Gradey Dick chipped in with 12 points, while Immanuel Quickley added 10 to the tally. White stood out with his long-range shooting, sinking 6 of 11 from beyond the arc, outperforming the entire Raptors squad, which went 5 for 32, marking their season-low for made 3-pointers. In contrast, they had managed six successful threes in a previous encounter with Philadelphia on October 25.
A noteworthy moment for the Raptors came when they completed 8 out of 8 three-pointers in the final quarter of their win against Phoenix on Sunday. However, they stumbled at the outset against Boston, failing to score from deep in their first 11 attempts until Ochai Agbaji broke the spell midway through the second quarter.
The Celtics were missing several players, including Kristaps Porzingis due to a non-COVID illness, leading to Torrey Craig making his first start with the team. Additionally, Jrue Holiday was rested, while Al Horford dealt with a toe injury, and Luke Kornet was unavailable for personal reasons.
The Raptors had previously snapped a 10-game losing streak against the Celtics in their clash on January 15 but were unable to replicate that success in this bout against their Atlantic division rivals.
A turning point during the game came when Toronto narrowed a 17-point fourth-quarter gap to just seven after Jamal Shead’s basket with 4:18 left. Tatum’s subsequent score and theft from Dick, followed by White’s impactful sixth 3-pointer, restored the Celtics’ command.
A highlight from the game was Tatum setting a personal best by notching nine assists in the first half alone.
Both teams face away games on Wednesday night, with Boston heading to Detroit and Toronto traveling to meet Indiana.
