Jayson Tatum logged 24 points, eight assists and seven rebounds and the Boston Celtics overcame a 22-point first-half deficit to earn a 98-93 road victory over the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night.
Boston trailed 93-90 with one minute left but scored the final eight points of the game.
After Tatum got the assist on Neemias Queta’s dunk, Tatum made two free throws to give Boston a 94-93 lead with 25.2 seconds left.
RJ Barrett missed a shot that would have given Toronto a one-point lead, Queta grabbed the rebound, was fouled and sank two free throws to give the Celtics a 96-93 advantage with 15.1 remaining.
Sam Hauser came up with a steal on the ensuing possession and sealed the win by making two free throws.
Derrick White added 19 points for the Celtics, who received 11 points and 13 rebounds from Queta.
Ja’Kobe Walter (17) and Allen Graves (13) were the leading scorers for Toronto, which took its fifth loss in seven games.
Boston, despite playing without Paul George (illness), earned its fifth win in a row and completed a 4-0 road trip. George scored 36 points on Tuesday as the Celtics defeated the Philadelphia 76ers.
Toronto made 10 of 18 3-point attempts in the first quarter and led 38-29 after the first 12 minutes. The Raptors didn’t commit a turnover in the opening quarter.
A 10-0 run gave the Raptors a 48-32 lead after a layup by Jakob Poeltl with 8:54 remaining in the first half, and Toronto extended its advantage to 59-37 with 5:24 left in the half on a free throw by Jamal Shead. The 22-point deficit was the largest Boston has faced this season.
The Celtics climbed back into the game with a 16-0 run that made it 59-53, but Toronto had a 61-54 halftime lead.
Boston led for the first time since the first quarter after a Jordan Walsh layup made it 66-65 with 7:09 left in the third. The Celtics stretched their lead to four points, but a Graves layup tied the game 75-75 with 2:22 left in the third.
Toronto ended the third quarter with a 13-4 spurt and had an 80-75 lead entering the fourth.
Boston had its first lead in the fourth quarter after a Tatum basket put the Celtics up 90-89 with 1:55 left.
–Field Level Media
