The Celtics knew that Tuesday’s blowout loss to the Thunder was embarrassing, inexcusable and unacceptable. Two nights later, they responded with one of their better performances of the season.
With the national spotlight back on, the Celtics put the ugliness of Tuesday night in Oklahoma City well behind them and submitted an effort reminiscent of November, when they lit up the NBA to the best start in the league. Jayson Tatum produced another signature, MVP-type performance with the second triple-double of his career – 29 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists – as the Celtics bounced back and took easy care of Luka Doncic’s Mavericks with a 124-95 victory.
Doncic had one of his worst games of the season with 23 points on 7-for-23 shooting with only three assists while looking limited because of some early ankle discomfort. The Celtics – who produced their largest margin of victory this season with the 29-point win – moved 1.5 games ahead of the Bucks and Nets for first place in the Eastern Conference as they head to San Antonio to wrap up this road trip against the lowly Spurs on Saturday night.
