BOSTON — As the Celtics processed their third consecutive agonizing loss on Monday night, they tried to thread a balance. They didn’t want to overreact to their struggles, but still wanted to act with a sense of urgency, knowing they have issues to iron out as the playoffs loom.
“Winning cures all,” Malcolm Brogdon said Monday in Cleveland.
For one night, it did.
A typically inconsequential home game against the struggling Blazers suddenly became more important for the reeling Celtics in the face of some late-season adversity. After Monday’s loss, Brogdon said he told Blake Griffin it was one they needed to win to get back on track before a six-game, 16-day road trip against winnable teams.
The Celtics stopped the bleeding and never let their foot off the gas in a wire-to-wire, 115-93 over the Blazers at TD Garden. Jayson Tatum scored 30 points, Derrick White added 20 points and seven assists, and behind strong early shooting and defense, the C’s (46-21) earned a double-digit lead and didn’t let it go.
Perhaps even more importantly as the Celtics head out on the road: Both Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who had just 11 points, earned some rare extra rest as each of them sat the entire fourth quarter in the blowout victory.
Damian Lillard led the Blazers (31-35) with 27 points and eight assists.
