Following the Boston Celtics 107-96 win over the Washington Wizards, Boston ended what had become the league’s longest losing streak and not too long after Celtics head coach Brad Stevens admitted that Boston was “desperate” to win a game amidst their four-game slide.
Celtics point guard Kyrie Irving led the way with his 16th double-double of the season after recording 13 points (on 6-14 shooting from the field) and 12 assists while Celtics forward Jayson Tatum made his presence in mutliple areas felt despite having a rough shooting night, tallying 10 points (he missed all five of his three-point attempts), eight rebounds, three assists and five steals.
Shooting guard Jaylen Brown would receive immediate praise from Stevens following the game for his play in the fourth quarter, most notably his defense on Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal.
Brown, who scored eight of his 13 points in the fourth quarter, held Beal — who scored a game-high 29 points — to just two points in the final period.
Jumping out to an early 13-2 lead, the Celtics seemed to be too much for the shorthanded Wizards to handle from the outset. However, a barrage of threes and a 10-2 run in the second quarter would allow Washington to creep back into the game, down just four points after being down by 10 points following the first quarter.
Battling throughout the third quarter, even briefly losing the lead against the Wizards in the fourth quarter, Boston would manage to pull away from Washington after slowing down Beal with intense defense and going on an 11-2 run midway through the fourth.
The Celtics will now look to take down the might Houston Rockets on Sunday.
