6 hours Ago
Jayson Tatum collected 43 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists to help the visiting Boston Celtics avoid back-to-back losses by beating the Chicago Bulls 123-98 Saturday night. Tatum made 16 of 24 field-goal attempts, including 9 of his 15 shots from 3-point range, in 36 minutes. Kristaps Porzingis added 22 points and seven rebounds for Boston, which received 19 points, five rebounds and eight assists from Jaylen Brown.
Al Horford contributed eight points and seven rebounds off the Boston bench. The Celtics had a 59-43 edge in rebounds. The loss ended Chicago's three-game winning streak, which included a 117-108 victory at Boston on Thursday night.
The Celtics have not lost consecutive games this season. Nicola Vucevic led the Bulls with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Patrick Williams, Coby White and Zach LaVine each added 14 points for Chicago, which was held to 44 points in the second half.
The Bulls shot 37.8 percent from the field (37 of 98). It was 28-28 after one quarter, but Boston had the game's first double-digit lead after Tatum made two free throws to give the Celtics a 57-47 advantage with 2:20 remaining in the first half.
Boston extended its lead to 61-49, but Chicago scored the final five points in the second quarter and trailed 61-54 at halftime. Boston led 88-75 after a Tatum 3-pointer with 1:25 remaining in the third quarter. The Celtics closed the quarter on a 15-4 spurt and carried a 93-77 advantage into the fourth.
The Celtics scored 14 of the first 16 points in the fourth to extend their lead to 107-79 with 6:45 to play. Boston's lead peaked at 29 later in the quarter. The Celtics had a 60-38 edge in points in the paint, and made 15 of their 45 3-point attempts.
The victory raised Boston's road record to 11-2. --Field Level Media/Reuters.
