By Tristan Deschenes, 98.5 The Sports Hub
Four out of five Celtics starters scored 25 points or more as the C’s started off their four-game west coast trip with a 127-117 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
All five starters scored in double figures for Boston. Gordon Hayward led the C’s with 28 points on an efficient 12-for-17 shooting from the field. Jayson Tatum shot only 8-for-21 from the field put still managed to put up 28 points. The real key for the Celtics on Friday, however, was the play of Daniel Theis. He was all over the court, scoring a career-high in points with 25 and grabbing a career high 16 rebounds. Jaylen Brown fouled out with 4:34 to go but still managed to put up 25 points.
The win marked Brad Stevens’ 309th win as Celtics head coach. Stevens moved into fourth all-time in franchise history, passing K.C. Jones.
Boston was on the verge of blowing out Minnesota multiple times throughout the game, building multiple double-digit leads in the second quarter. Boston held a 61-53 lead at the half, led by Tatum’s 18 first-half points. Malik Beasley kept the Timberwolves in it with 16 first-half points of his own.
The Celtics jumped out to a 13-point lead in the third quarter after a Theis three-pointer gave Boston a 68-55 lead with 9:48 to go in the quarter. Minnesota would not go away as they continued to battle and cut the Celtics’ lead to 95-88 heading into the fourth.
The Timberwolves kept it close throughout most of the fourth quarter until Boston pulled away late. With 4:23 to go, Theis scored a layup to give Boston a 116-111 lead. Tatum followed the bucket up with a three-pointer on the next possession to extend the Boston lead to 119-111. Theis would complete a 7-0 Boston run with a layup with a dunk with 2:17 to increase Boston’s lead to 121-111 and essentially put the game away.
Beasley led Minnesota with 27 points in all. Newly acquired point guard D’Angelo Russell scored 18 points and dropped 13 assists as well.
Up Next: Boston continues their road trip at the Staples Center in a big matchup with LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
