Wednesday night in Atlanta, the Celtics were down two of their two top guards with Marcus Smart (right ankle inflammation) and Malcolm Brogdon (right hamstring tightness). Despite that, while facing one of the league’s best backcourts in the Hawks’ Trae Young and Dejonte Murray, the Celtics still were able to come away with a 126-101 win.

With Smart out, Derrick White got the start at point guard for the C’s. He recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 assists, shooting 6-of-11 from the floor and 2-of-4 from deep.

The Celtics also got a boost from Payton Pritchard off the bench. Pritchard, who played a season-high 24 minutes due to the injuries at guard, scored 14 points of 5-of-8 shooting, including making four of his six three point attempts.

Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 22 points in the game. Jayson Tatum had 19 and flirted with a triple-double, adding a season-high eight assists as well as seven rebounds.

Sam Hauser and Luke Kornet both scored 15 points off the bench. Hauser was 5-of-6 shooting, all from three, with six rebounds and a game-high plus-35 rating. Kornet added eight rebounds and four blocks to his stat line.

For the Hawks, Young scored a game-high 27 points. Murray added 19, while no other player had more than 13 points. Defensively, the Celtics limited Atlanta to making just 41.6 percent of their shots, including just 21.9 percent of their threes.

With the win, their eighth in a row, the Celtics improved to 12-3 on the season. They remain half a game up on the Milwaukee Bucks for first place in the Eastern Conference.

That game was the first game of a three-game road trip for the C’s. They’ll be back in action on Friday in New Orleans when they take on the Pelicans. Coverage of that one begins at 8 p.m. on 98.5 The Sports Hub and the Celtics Radio Network.

Alex Barth is a writer and digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Thoughts? Comments? Questions? Looking for a podcast guest? Let him know on Twitter @RealAlexBarth or via email at [email protected].