The Sports Xchange
Nov 18, 2017
ATLANTA -- Kyrie Irving scored 30 points and forward Jaylen Brown added a career-high 27 to help the Boston Celtics extend their winning streak to 15 games with a 110-99 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday.
Irving shot 10-for-12 from the field, including five 3-pointers, and added five assists and four rebounds. Brown, who played at Wheeler High School in suburban Atlanta, was 10-for-13 from the floor, including four 3-pointers, and had four rebounds.
The 15-game winning streak is the fifth-longest in franchise history. The club record is 19 straight, set in 2008.
Brown converted a three-point play with 5:56 remaining to give Boston (15-2) a four-point lead and Irving made two free throws the next trip down the floor to make it 92-86. Atlanta never got closer than four points the rest of the night as Irving scored Boston's last seven points.
Rookie Jayson Tatum and Marcus Morris added 14 points apiece as the Celtics shot 47.6 percent and made 47.1 (16-of-34) of its 3-pointers.
Atlanta (3-13) was led by point guard Dennis Schroder with 23 points and nine assists. Kent Bazemore added 19 points and rookie center John Collins came off the bench to add 18 points and seven rebounds.
The Hawks picked up where they left off from Wednesday's 46-point win over Sacramento, when they shot 63.3 percent. Atlanta shot 65 percent in the first quarter, led by as many as 16 points and had a 35-20 lead after one period. It was the second-most points allowed in a quarter by the Celtics this season.
Boston outscored Atlanta 12-2 to open the second period and trailed 37-32 after Marcus Smart made a 3-pointer with 9:17 left. The Celtics got as close as four points (41-37), but could get no closer and Atlanta held a 50-44 lead at the half.
The Celtics finally caught up when Brown drained a 3-pointer to tie the game 65-65. The surge was led by Tatum, who was held scoreless in the first half and it gave Boston an 80-77 lead at the end of three quarters.
NOTE: Atlanta F Luke Babbitt was in the starting lineup. He left the game early on Wednesday with tightness in his back. Atlanta got F DeAndre Bembry returned after missing 14 games with a fractured right wrist suffered in the season opener against Dallas. ... Atlanta G Isaiah Taylor suffered a retinal tear to his right eye in practice on Friday and will miss 1-2 weeks. Taylor scored 12 points against Sacramento on Wednesday. ... Boston G Kyrie Irving wore his protective face mask for the third straight game. ... Atlanta assigned F/G Nicolas Brussino and C Miles Plumlee to G League affiliate Erie. Brussino has appeared in four games for Atlanta, while Plumlee, acquired from Charlotte in the Dwight Howard trade, has missed all 14 games with a strained right quad.