Celtics pull away late to beat Grizzlies

By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net

Opening the NBA Sundays schedule, limited to two early games on Super Bowl Sunday, the Boston Celtics defeated the Memphis Grizzlies, 119-109, at TD Garden.

With Jaylen Brown, Marcus Smart, and Malcolm Brogdon sidelined alongside Italian Danilo Gallinari (left knee), Derrick White combined his game-high 23 points with ten assists for his second straight double-double, third overall in the 2022-23 NBA Regular Season. Sam Hauser added six triples and a total of 20 points. Jayson Tatum and Al Horford chipped in 16 points apiece.

The lone European active player of the game, Spanish Santi Aldama came off the bench for nine points, seven rebounds, two blocks, one steal, and one assist over 28 minutes. Grizzlies star Ja Morant had 25 points, seven assists, and six rebounds in the losing effort.

Mishandling an early double-digit advantage and using a late surge to eventually bank in the fourth win in a row, the Celtics improved to 41-16. They currently enjoy a 1.5-game lead over the Milwaukee Bucks and Giannis Antetokounmpo, sitting second in the Eastern Conference table.

Jakob Poeltl starts

In Scotiabank Arena, the Toronto Raptors held off the Detroit Pistons and Bojan Bogdanovic to prevail, 119-118.

Austrian Jakob Poeltl had six points, five rebounds, three blocks, two steals, and one assist in his first start since returning to Toronto via trade from the San Antonio Spurs. Spanish Juancho Hernangomez did not leave the bench and British O.G. Anunoby (wrist) remained on the injury list.

Experienced Croatian forward, Bogdanovic logged 33 points with 10/18 field goals to go with five rebounds, three assists, and one block. French Killian Hayes also started but was held to 1/10 shots and two points while registering five assists, four rebounds, and one block.

2022-23 STANDINGS

EAST

TEAM	W	L	LAST 10
1 BOSTON	41	16	6-4
2 MILWAUKEE	39	17	10-0
3 PHILADELPHIA	36	19	7-3
4 CLEVELAND	37	22	8-2
5 BROOKLYN	33	23	4-6
6 MIAMI	32	25	7-3
7 NEW YORK	31	27	6-4
8 ATLANTA	29	28	5-5
9 WASHINGTON	26	29	7-3
10 TORONTO	27	31	6-4
11 CHICAGO	26	30	4-6
12 INDIANA	25	33	2-8
13 ORLANDO	23	34	5-5
14 CHARLOTTE	15	42	3-7
15 DETROIT	15	44	2-8

WEST

TEAM	W	L	LAST 10
1 DENVER	39	18	6-4
2 MEMPHIS	34	22	3-7
3 SACRAMENTO	32	24	5-5
4 DALLAS	31	27	6-4
5 PHOENIX	31	27	7-3
6 LA CLIPPERS	31	28	6-4
7 NEW ORLEANS	29	28	3-7
8 MINNESOTA	30	29	6-4
9 GOLDEN STATE	28	28	5-5
10 OKLAHOMA CITY	27	28	5-5
11 UTAH	28	30	4-6
12 PORTLAND	27	29	6-4
13 LA LAKERS	26	31	4-6
14 SAN ANTONIO	14	43	0-10
15 HOUSTON	13	43	3-7

-Top six teams of each conference advance directly to the Playoffs
-Teams seeded 7th to 10th will compete in Play-In tournament

Photo Credit: Getty Images

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