The Boston Celtics were one of many surprises to the early part of the NBA season, but not for the right reasons, as their struggles threw fans off with the return of their stars, Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. After an Eastern Conference Finals appearance a season ago, it was almost guaranteed that they would roll through the East this season. That was not the case to kick things off, but they seem to have found their groove as of late, winning their eighth straight game on Friday night, 129-108, over the Atlanta Hawks. Irving only played three quarters, but scored 24 points in the Celtics' 18th win of the season, which puts them in fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings.
The Celtics never trailed at the TD Garden after scoring 42 points in the first quarter, as they had five players finish in double figures, all of which with at least 18 points. That included Jayson Tatum with 22, Marcus Morris at 20, Gordon Hayward scoring 19, and Daniel Theis with 18. They improved to 9-3 on their home floor, taking advantage of the lowly Hawks' miscues, as they finished with 24 turnovers on the night. Six of those turnovers took place in the opening 12 minutes.
Kevin Huerter led the Hawks with 19 points, but they have now dropped six of their past seven games. John Collins chipped in a double-double of 11 points and 14 rebounds, as the Hawks are now just 6-22 on the season, including 2-13 on the road. After a slow start, they did use a 13-2 run in the second quarter to pull their deficit within four, but that was as close as they would get the rest of the way.
Boston would extend their lead to 11 by halftime, and led by double digits the entire second half. They will be putting their win streak on the line on Saturday night, when they visit the struggling Detroit Pistons. Meanwhile, the Hawks will be back at it on Sunday against the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center.
The Celtics never trailed at the TD Garden after scoring 42 points in the first quarter, as they had five players finish in double figures, all of which with at least 18 points. That included Jayson Tatum with 22, Marcus Morris at 20, Gordon Hayward scoring 19, and Daniel Theis with 18. They improved to 9-3 on their home floor, taking advantage of the lowly Hawks' miscues, as they finished with 24 turnovers on the night. Six of those turnovers took place in the opening 12 minutes.
Kevin Huerter led the Hawks with 19 points, but they have now dropped six of their past seven games. John Collins chipped in a double-double of 11 points and 14 rebounds, as the Hawks are now just 6-22 on the season, including 2-13 on the road. After a slow start, they did use a 13-2 run in the second quarter to pull their deficit within four, but that was as close as they would get the rest of the way.
Boston would extend their lead to 11 by halftime, and led by double digits the entire second half. They will be putting their win streak on the line on Saturday night, when they visit the struggling Detroit Pistons. Meanwhile, the Hawks will be back at it on Sunday against the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center.
