PORTLAND, Ore. — The Celtics took the floor at the Moda Center on Sunday missing three starters, in their third time zone in four days, and with little to play for as far as the standings were concerned.
But as has been the case so often over the past two years, the team just shrugged and went about its business. Sam Hauser’s sharpshooting and Jayson Tatum’s explosive second half propelled Boston to a 129-116 win, its fifth in a row.
Tatum scored 24 of his 30 points in the second half and added nine rebounds and nine assists to lead the Celtics. Hauser connected on 8 of 10 3-pointers and scored 24 points. The Celtics, who were without Jaylen Brown (knee), Kristaps Porzingis (rest), Jrue Holiday (rest), and Xavier Tillman (knee), shot 54.5 percent from the field and hit 23 of 50 3-pointers.
Shaedon Sharpe had 23 points to lead the Blazers.
Payton Pritchard, a Portland native, received a loud ovation when he was introduced in the starting lineup. And the roar was even louder when he pulled up and hit a deep 3-pointer on Boston’s opening possession.
But his early stay on the court was brief. He committed his second foul just 91 seconds into the opening quarter. Coach Joe Mazzulla left Pritchard in, and he collected his third foul on a box-out at the 7:21 mark. This time, Pritchard was removed from the game and he stayed out for about 11 minutes.
His absence created an opening for rookie Baylor Scheierman, who has taken advantage of expanded opportunities recently. Scheierman drilled a pair of 3-pointers and had a productive stint alongside JD Davison, who received a rare first-quarter chance.
Davison hit a 3-pointer before coming up with a steal and racing to the rim and drawing a foul. In the first quarter, Scheierman and Davison combined for 10 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block, helping the Celtics to a 34-24 lead.
Tatum took a seat to start the second quarter, however, and the lead vanished soon after. A 3-pointer by former Celtics guard Dalano Banton with 5:43 left tied the score at 43. Tatum returned less than a minute later, and order was quickly restored with a 9-0 Boston burst that was highlighted by a steal and dunk by Derrick White.
The Celtics have had great success with double-big lineups this season, but Pritchard revealed Friday that Boston wants to explore situations with smaller groups during this road trip, and in the first half the Celtics did not deploy any lineups with two bigs, with Neemias Queta the odd man out.
The speed and spacing helped the Celtics find lanes in the paint and spray passes to open 3-point shooters, and it was hard to argue with the results. Hauser improved to 5 of 6 from the arc when he hit one with 1:01 left, helping the Celtics take a 64-51 lead to halftime.
Tatum operated more like a distributor in the first half, when he scored just 6 points. But it did not take him long to remind everyone that he is a flammable scorer. He tallied 10 points over the first four minutes of the third, highlighted by a 4-point play, and had 18 in the quarter.
Hauser’s second 3-pointer of the quarter gave Boston an 84-66 lead, its largest. Portland pinched back with a quick 8-0 burst, but a pair of 3-pointers by Pritchard, who started the third quarter on the bench, sent the Celtics to the fourth with a 102-90 advantage.
Portland lingered for most of the fourth quarter, but never really put a scare into the Celtics. Tatum’s one-legged fadeaway with 1:08 left made it 129-116 and finished off the Blazers.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.
