The Boston Celtics, with 29 points off Jayson Tatum, confirmed the Brooklyn Nets’ failure last Monday by winning 116-112 and condemning the first-round playoff series with a humiliating 4-0 to advance and become the winner of the series between the Milwaukee Bucks and the Chicago Bulls.
Built to go for it, Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving’s Nets closed out a season marked by many lows and few highs, being overtaken by a Celtics in which teamwork triumphed, led by Tatum, Marcus Smart and Jalen Brown.
Tatum, who finished on six errors with 2.49 left, contributed 29 points, three rebounds and five assists, although his Celtics were on the brink of being tracked back by the Nets when they were left without their leader.
Marcus Smart, with a double-double of 20 points and 11 assists, in addition to five rebounds, and Brown, with 22 points and eight rebounds, managed to defend the fourth win that sent them to the next round, where they will play against the winner of the series between the Bucks and Bulls, with the former leading 3-1.
Durant ended his season this way, despite a game in which he led his teammates with 39 points, seven rebounds and nine assists.
Seth Curry had 23 points and five three-pointers, while Kyrie Irving had 20, with five rebounds and five assists.
Tatum and Smart, leaders
Tatum and Brown led the Celtics again, giving the Celtics an eight-point lead at halftime (58-50) with 12 points each, against the Nets in which Durant led the way and contributed 20 points, already four more than those who scored in the third game.
He took his responsibility, although the Celtics didn’t hesitate to hurt him by pushing him to the limit in defense and accusing him of fouls, all three with five minutes left in the second quarter.
The low quintet Nash bet on suffered in the paint and the Celtics took advantage to dominate in offensive rebounds and extend their lead to twelve points in the third period, which Tatum gave a real recital.
Boston’s No. 0 scored from the perimeter, with beautiful jump shots as well as powerful and quick penetrations, giving the Celtics a 15-point margin and leaving the nets against the wall. He had 24 after three quarters and only contributed 12 in the third period.
Durant keeps the nets alive
It was only thanks to the brilliant connection between Durant and Nic Claxton that Brooklyn didn’t fall out of the game for good.
KD had seven points in the third period and took advantage of the intense marking Boston dedicated to him to provide three assists to his teammates. Irving also, on a dull day, got some good rides that still left the Nets hopeful.
If Durant had dirty troubles, Tatum was no wonder. Already five in the final set, Udoka had him waiting on the bench to see how his teammates would react.
The Celtics sentence without Tatum
The Nets took advantage of his absence to get a 9-1 point that allowed them to get closer again. A great Dragic, with eight quick points, put them three away at 102-99 and Irving and Durant got to 109-108 on the scoreboard.
Tatum’s sixth offense came with 2:49 to go, for a controversial offensive foul, which was when the Celtics became afraid of losing. They didn’t score for a minute and 50 seconds and the Nets moved on.
Durant had two free kicks to bring his team to one point, but he missed the second, and with 111–109, the Celtics grabbed the rebound that gave them the win in the game and in the series.
Source: El heraldo
Jason Jack is an experienced technology journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in computer science and engineering, he has a deep understanding of the latest technology trends and developments. He writes about a wide range of technology topics, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, software development, and cybersecurity.
