Jayson Tatum delivered an impressive performance with 33 points, eight rebounds, and nine assists, as the Boston Celtics secured a 118-115 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday night in Minneapolis.
Derrick White contributed 26 points, shooting 10-for-20 from the field, while Sam Hauser added 15 points, and Jrue Holiday chipped in with 11.
Julius Randle led the Timberwolves with 27 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists, supported by Naz Reid’s 20 points off the bench and Jaden McDaniels’ 19 points.
The Celtics managed the win despite missing key starters Jaylen Brown (right shoulder strain) and Kristaps Porzingis (sprained left ankle). Boston shot 50 percent overall (46 of 92) and 38.6 percent from three-point range (22 of 57). Meanwhile, Minnesota shot 50.7 percent (37 of 73) from the field and an impressive 55.3 percent (21 of 39) from beyond the arc but was hampered by 16 turnovers compared to Boston’s four.
The Celtics led by as many as 14 points before the Timberwolves rallied to tie the game at 94-94 with 9:16 remaining, following a 3-pointer by Donte DiVincenzo. However, Tatum, who shot 13 of 27, stepped up in the clutch, hitting a key jump shot to extend Boston’s lead to 112-104 with 4:20 left.
White shone in Brown’s absence, emerging as a secondary scoring option. He drained a critical step-back 3-pointer to push the lead to 115-107 with 2:59 remaining and followed up with another 3-pointer after Reid cut the deficit, extending the lead to 118-110.
Despite a late rally by the Timberwolves, including a layup by Reid and three free throws by DiVincenzo, Minnesota fell short as time expired.
Boston had built a 62-51 halftime lead, with Tatum and Hauser contributing 12 points each in the first half, while Randle paced Minnesota with 15 points.
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