Post Game - Celtics vs. Utah Jazz - Tuesday, March 12 (W)

https://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore/_/gameId/401585571

Celtics-Jazz takeaways: Tatum, C's end road trip on a high note

https://sports.yahoo.com/celtics-jazz-takeaways-tatum-cs-033757834.html

Justin Leger
Tue, Mar 12, 2024, 11:37 PM EDT·4 min read




Celtics-Jazz takeaways: Tatum, C's end road trip on a high note originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Three Key Storylines

Derrick White snaps out of 3-point slump
Jayson Tatum ends road trip on a high note
C's frontcourt in good hands with Luke Kornet

The Boston Celtics finished their five-game road trip with an entertaining victory in Utah.

After starting the trip with two consecutive losses, the C's rattled off three straight road wins over the Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazers, and finally the Jazz on Tuesday. Despite being short-handed on the second night of their back-to-back, they erupted for 44 first-quarter points to tie a season-high and a whopping 72 points in the first half. It was their 15th 70-point first half of the season, a franchise record.

The Celtics watched their 17-point lead dwindle to two in the third quarter, but they dominated the fourth to run away with a 123-107 win. They improved to a league-best 9-2 on the second night of back-to-backs and did so without Jaylen Brown (sacroiliac strain), Al Horford (left big toe sprain), and Kristaps Porzingis (right hamstring strain).

Jayson Tatum and Derrick White carried the load offensively with 38 and 24 points, respectively. Jrue Holiday chipped in 16 points and a game-high eight assists in his return to the Celtics lineup.

Keyonte George paced the Jazz in scoring with 26 points while Collin Sexton added 20.

The Celtics (51-14) will return home to take on the Phoenix Suns (37-27) on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET. Before we look ahead to that matchup, here are three takeaways from Tuesday's game.

Derrick White snaps out of 3-point slump

White struggled to find his 3-point shot throughout the road trip. He entered Tuesday an uncharacteristic 1-for-14 from beyond the arc over his last four games.

The C's guard ended that slump emphatically in Utah, drilling his first four 3-pointers of the night and finishing a scorching 7-of-11 from deep. His seven made 3s tie his season-high and come just one short of his career-high.



White scored 24 points on 8-of-17 shooting and, per usual, was a difference-maker on the defensive end. He tallied three blocks and a steal while bringing down six rebounds. His 77 blocks this season is a new career-high.

Jayson Tatum ends road trip on a high note

Tatum notched at least 26 points in all but one game during the Celtics' trip, but it was far from his most efficient shooting stretch. The five-time All-Star failed to shoot more than 40 percent from the floor in the first four games. The one game he'd really like to have back is his 15-point performance in the loss to Denver.

On Tuesday though, Tatum looked more like his MVP-caliber self. He came out firing with 15 first-quarter points to set the tone for the victory. When the Jazz cut the Celtics' 17-point lead to two in the third quarter, Tatum came through with two badly needed buckets to shift the momentum back in Boston's favor.





Tatum ended up with a game-high 38 points -- his highest scoring total since Feb. 13 -- on 13-of-25 shooting (4-10 3PT). The 26-year-old added six rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block to remind the NBA world he still belongs in the MVP conversation.

C's frontcourt in good hands with Luke Kornet

With Porzingis out, Kornet has stepped up and produced strong minutes for the C's. He played a significant role in the team's win over Phoenix and made his presence felt again in the victory over Portland.

On Tuesday, Kornet was the Celtics' starting center with Porzingis and Horford both absent. Again, he took advantage of his opportunity.

Kornet didn't waste any time as he notched eight points and six boards in the first half. He stayed productive for the rest of the game, finishing with 12 points, nine boards (four offensive), and six assists to tie his career-high. He also set a career-high for offensive rebounds in a season with 87.

As great as Kornet has been, Boston will hope it won't have to lean on him as heavily going forward and that Porzingis will return to the lineup Thursday at TD Garden. If the Latvian big man remains sidelined, Kornet has at least proven capable of stepping up in his absence.

It's also worth noting that trade deadline addition Xavier Tillman was up for the task on Tuesday night. The former Memphis Grizzlies forward logged seven points and eight rebounds in 27 minutes off the bench.

From another perspective:


The Utah Jazz fall 123-107 to the Boston Celtics

https://www.slcdunk.com/2024/3/12/24099292/the-jazz-fall-123-107-to-the-celtics

Keyonte George continues to show out

By Calvin Chappell@CHALVIN2018 Mar 12, 2024, 11:38pm MDT 2 Comments / 2 New




The Utah Jazz hosted the Boston Celtics on Tuesday night. The Jazz had lost five of the last six games and ten of the previous twelve. With Lauri Markkanen still out, the Jazz had little hope against the league-leading Celtics.

Rookie Keyonte George started the game on fire, scoring the first seven points for Utah.



After a poor shooting start to the season, George found his shot and looks dynamic night in and night out.

The Jazz fell behind early and pushed to get back into the game. They trailed by as many as 22 points, but the third quarter brought an energetic push to get the game back to within four points. Kris Dunn, Jordan Clarkson, and the Jazz made shots and defended.



The Celtics regained control in the fourth quarter behind Jayson Tatum’s elite scoring. They kept their foot on the pedal until the end of the game. The Jazz lost by double-digits in a fitting end for the night dedicated to the Al Jefferson era of Utah Jazz basketball.



Player of the game

Keyonte George has been on a tear recently, interrupted by a few missed games. He picked up where he left off tonight with five made threes, 26 points, and six assists.



Honorable mentions:

Collin Sexton: 20 points, seven rebounds, five assists.

Jordan Clarkson: 21 points

A 3-2 road trip.  We had hoped for better, we certainly hoped for wins against contenders Cleveland and especially Denver, but 3-2 is still a winning road trip.  Now we must focus and not fall into the letdown trap of losing the first game back after a long road trip vs Phoenix.

Helluva game by Luke, huh?  Didn't know he had that in him.  I've come around to accepting that he really is more than just 'tall', that he really is a legit NBA big, but he held his place down last night.  10 points on 4-7, 9 boards, 4 of them offensive, 6 assists and zero turnovers and a block in 28 minutes.  Those are quite solid numbers, for any big that is not expected to be a scorer.

Tatum with a big night, finally.  Hopefully that slump is out of his system.

Derrick just took over.  He had 3 turnovers out of our 8, so that's not good, but he killed the Jazz in every other way.  7-11 from 3.  3 blocks.  With 79 blocks this season Derrick White is now the #14 shot blocker in the NBA.  The only player that is ahead of him that is even close to him in size is Scottie Barnes @ 10th with 88 blocks and Barnes has played about 130 more minutes than White.  It says a lot about Derrick that he lays back and plays defense and opportunistic offense when we're healthy but when we're short-handed like we were last night he plays like an All-Star.  That's him being a true Celtic.

Sam has turned into an above average defender, he has really come into his own in that area this year.  He had 2 blocks last night.  He's under contract for one more year for $2M.  That's a steal, certainly, at this point.  Good job, Brad.  

Payton was an awful 3-12, 2-9 from 3, but ended up +14.  His defense was really "in your face".  That's one thing I like about our bench.  Al, Payton and Sam have all dedicated themselves to defense this year.  Last year all they wanted to do was get in the game and shoot but this year they are really playing defense hard.

Down our top 2 bigs?  Living and dying with #3 and #4 on the depth chart? No problem. Tillman played 27 minutes.  Scored 8 on 3-5 including a 3 and 8 rebounds, 4 offensive.  Knowing what he knows, and doing it.  I was a fan of Lamar, but it's looking like Xavier Tillman was another very good by Brad.


Bobby Manning @RealBobManning
about 4 hours ago
Tillman-Kornet: 8 minutes, +53.3, 60 def. rating @ Utah. Sparked the decisive 20-0 run to begin the 4th quarter.


Sean Grande
@SeanGrandePBP
Since the loss to the Lakers on February 1st, the Celtics have won 14 of 16.

In that span, they've averaged 1.265 points per possession.

The gap between them and #2 Dallas in that span...is bigger than the gap between #2 Dallas and #18 Chicago.

That redefines ridiculous.













Sean Grande
@SeanGrandePBP
With three straight double-digit wins to close the road trip, the 2023-24 Celtics, who are 29-3 at home, just landed on this list as well...





Sean Grande
@SeanGrandePBP
17 games left for the Celtics.

They can clinch their 10th consecutive playoff trip as early as Thursday if two of these three things happen;

* Celtics beat the Suns at TD Garden.

* Pacers lose their back to back against the Bulls tomorrow.

Sixers lose Thursday at Milwaukee.




Bob


.

Nice to see another B2B win. I believe the Celts are 9-2.

Tops in the NBA.

TOUGH game coming up on Thur.
Just because the Celtics beat them does not entitle the Suns to a win tomorrow.

This was really a nice win playing without JB, Zinger and Al, and on a B2B traveling from Portland.

Sometimes I think my eyes are deceiving me when I watch Kornet. I have to say the guy is playing lights out on both ends of the floor. I always thought he was the weak link, but maybe he's transformed himself into a solid rotation player. I still don't feel comfortable having him guard mobile bigs away from the basket, but other than that he's been outstanding.

In addition, Xavier Tillman is a beast. I think we really got something here. He actually can shoot the three, not great form, but can make a few. Give him a summer to work on his shot and he can be a force. His defense and rebounding are as advertised. I think we are looking at Al's heir apparent. He's an UFA, we have to sign him.

Kudos to JT. He has to be tired, but carried us last night. I hope we clinch these things fast to get him some much needed rest.

Couple of impressive things I saw:

1)  Luke doesn't have Perk Cinder Block hands in the post.  He also hangs around the basket to either dunk or take out the trash like RWIII but is crazy-more reliable than RWIII.  

2)  No other way to describe it.  Tillman is a vacuum.  The ball finds him.  He stirred up a bunch of things that were initially going the other way just by being right there in the mix.  

3)  Tatum just keeps grinding it out.  Great game by him.  Why did CJ bring him back in the 4th?!!  He sat out half of it, then came back in and the lead dwindled.  Give him a break, Coach Joe!!  I see WAS and DET coming up before MIL.  Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that one out!!  

4)  If we are so fortunate to hoist the trophy this year, I'd like to see a split with Tatum and White for Finals MVP.  I know the league won't let that happen, but Derrick is just ridiculous at times.  Spectacular.  Really fun to watch what he's going to do next.    

OK.  That's good for now.

db

Yeah our youngins on the bench from last year have all really improved, Hauser is no longer a one dimensional player, same can be said for Pritch and Luke. Pritch has a lot more speed than I thought, he will really push the pace and his perimeter defense is like a pit bull, kind of like Heckler’s personality. Both even if their shot is off, can still help us, when they’re on we are unbeatable.

Glad Tatum had a big game with some fast wicked slams, sprinkled in with 3’s; wish he had it going like this vs Joker and Durant. If he had it going like that vs Joker, we win no question and he’s still in the MVP discussion. When you’re the best player you get the most praise and the most grief, just the way it is. Love Tillman, he’s like a combo of Silas and Unseld. You’re not gonna move him, he and Luke looked great together.

Love how well we play with the system working and players knowing how to step up in their roles when the big boys are out. Good job Joe and staff.

cowens/oldschool wrote:Yeah our youngins on the bench from last year have all really improved, Hauser is no longer a one dimensional player, same can be said for Pritch and Luke. Pritch has a lot more speed than I thought, he will really push the pace and his perimeter defense is like a pit bull, kind of like Heckler’s personality. Both even if their shot is off, can still help us, when they’re on we are unbeatable.

Glad Tatum had a big game with some fast wicked slams, sprinkled in with 3’s; wish he had it going like this vs Joker and Durant. If he had it going like that vs Joker, we win no question and he’s still in the MVP discussion. When you’re the best player you get the most praise and the most grief, just the way it is. Love Tillman, he’s like a combo of Silas and Unseld. You’re not gonna move him, he and Luke looked great together.

Love how well we play with the system working and players knowing how to step up in their roles when the big boys are out. Good job Joe and staff.

"his perimeter defense is like a pit bull, kind of like Heckler’s personality."


I resemble that remark.





Bob


.

Luke Kornet is a valuable big for this team.

9 boards, 4 on the offensive end to go with 9 assists and a block.

I'm no longer laughing and making bad jokes when I talk about Luke K. But I am smiling when I watch him play.

bobheckler wrote:

cowens/oldschool wrote:Yeah our youngins on the bench from last year have all really improved, Hauser is no longer a one dimensional player, same can be said for Pritch and Luke. Pritch has a lot more speed than I thought, he will really push the pace and his perimeter defense is like a pit bull, kind of like Heckler’s personality. Both even if their shot is off, can still help us, when they’re on we are unbeatable.

Glad Tatum had a big game with some fast wicked slams, sprinkled in with 3’s; wish he had it going like this vs Joker and Durant. If he had it going like that vs Joker, we win no question and he’s still in the MVP discussion. When you’re the best player you get the most praise and the most grief, just the way it is. Love Tillman, he’s like a combo of Silas and Unseld. You’re not gonna move him, he and Luke looked great together.

Love how well we play with the system working and players knowing how to step up in their roles when the big boys are out. Good job Joe and staff.

"his perimeter defense is like a pit bull, kind of like Heckler’s personality."


I resemble that remark.





Bob


.

I don’t lie

NYCelt wrote:Luke Kornet is a valuable big for this team.

9 boards, 4 on the offensive end to go with 9 assists and a block.

I'm no longer laughing and making bad jokes when I talk about Luke K. But I am smiling when I watch him play.

The 3 bench players I mentioned have all exceeded my expectations this year, credit to them, their work ethic and Brad finding these young diamond in the rough’s; and developing a culture/staff where these youngins could grow/develop their games. Remember beginning of season everyone saying after the top 6, the team is vulnerable; now we look like one of the deepest teams to me. Joe has been further masterful load managing us when needed and the bench has stepped up. Now we also have another rough rider in the paint in Tillman!! Brilliant, I now love hearing the opposing teams announcers and how much respect they give our team, calling us the best team in basketball and giving many worthy praises to the J’s. Hey these other pundits/commentators have to know something about the game, what franchise wouldn’t want 2 energetic athletic skilled 2 way studs like the J’s? Back to Luke, I remember about 2 months ago seeing him dunk and block some shots in the paint and thinking, who is this guy? Well he has built on that and plays like a real 7 footer now, throwing his weight around in traffic, using his length close to the rim, hustling up and down the floor. Great job Luke!!

Hey you can't argue with the Kornet Kontest!! It looks like it works far more than it doesn't! Need more data. Bueller?! Anyone?!!

db