Celtics crush Warriors to claim 11th straight victory
The Boston Celtics continued their dominant run against the Golden State Warriors, winning their 11th straight game with a 140-88 victory.
The 52-point win was the third-largest margin of victory in Celtics history.
Boston became the first team in NBA history to win three games by at least 50 points in a single season. The Celtics had previously beaten the Indiana Pacers and Brooklyn Nets by 51 and 50 points, respectively.
Sunday's game was tied midway through the first quarter before Boston went on a 61-17 run to open up a franchise-record 44-point halftime margin.
Guard Jaylen Brown scored 29 points in only 22 minutes, while All-Star Jayson Tatum dropped 27 on his 26th birthday. Payton Pritchard added 19 off the bench.
Warriors forward Draymond Green told The Athletic's Anthony Slater that Golden State planned to let Jaylen Brown shoot, and that this defensive strategy was implemented "15 minutes before we left the locker room."
"It didn't work. Oh well. We move on," Green added.
Brown said postgame that he thought Golden State's defense was disrespectful, according to John Karalis of the Boston Sports Journal.
Steph Curry had a season-low four points on 2-of-13 from the field. The nine-time All-Star didn't play in the second half. This was Curry's lowest-scoring game since he had three points against the Celtics during the 2021-22 season.
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr told reporters that he wasn't worried about the loss, according to ESPN's Kendra Andrews.
TD Garden has been a fortress for Boston this season. The Celtics are 29-3 at home with an overall record of 48-12.
Golden State sits ninth in the Western Conference with a 33-29 record.
Boston will take on the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday.
The Warriors will return home Wednesday and host the Milwaukee Bucks.