Celtics Salvage Road Trip, Take Down Suns
The Boston Celtics did everything in their power to give away Monday night’s game in Phoenix. Luckily, Isaiah Thomas helped to save the day.
After the Celtics scored a season-high 67 points in the first half and led by ten heading into the fourth, the team went cold. Making only 2 field goals in the first 8 plus minutes of the quarter allowed the Suns to get within one at 101-100.
Then Thomas, after committing four turnovers earlier in the 4th, decided it was time to redeem himself.
With 1:37 remaining, Thomas converted on a four-point play after being fouled by Brandon Knight on a made 3-pointer. A minute later, Thomas made a driving layup to put the Celtics up by 7.
Thomas then knocked down 2 free throws with one second left to help seal the 115-110 Boston victory.
For the second straight game, Thomas had 21 points off of the bench. He added 7 assists.
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A night after losing to the Lakers in overtime, the Celtics came out on fire to start the game. Avery Bradley scored 14 points on 5-5 shooting in the first quarter. His 3-pointer with 3:48 left in the quarter put the Celtics up ten early, 23-13.
The Suns, behind Alex Len’s six points, were able to cut the lead to five, 26-21, at the end of the first.
The Celtics exploded for 41 points in the second quarter. Thomas, playing against his former team only four days after being traded, picked up where Bradley left off. Thomas scored 10 points in the quarter and had 5 of his assists.
The Celtics knocked down six 3-pointers in the quarter, including two by Jae Crowder. Crowder also contributed three assists as well.
In taking a 67-50 halftime lead, the Celtics were led by Brandon Bass with 15 points (11 in the 2nd).
For all the positive’s of the first half, the Celtics looked like a completely opposite team in the second half. After extending the lead to 75-55 on an Evan Turner dunk, the Suns went on a 16-2 run to get back in the game.
A Turner 3-pointer just before the buzzer put the Celtics up 89-79 heading into the fourth.
Bradley scored 23 points to lead the Celtics, marking the third straight game in which he’s scored 20 or more. He also had a career-high 6 steals. “He’s the one leading by example,” said Crowder on Bradley’s recent stretch of play.
Bass added 18 points and 6 rebounds for the Celtics.
Eric Bledsoe led the Suns with 21 points and 10 assists while Knight added 20 points. This was the Suns 8th loss in their last 9 games and are slowly slipping out of playoff contention in the Western Conference.
The Celtics, meanwhile, remain 2 games back of the final playoff spot in the East. They return home on Wednesday night to face the New York Knicks.
NOTES:
-Former Celtics guard Marcus Thornton had three points on 1-5 shooting in 8 minutes of playing time.
-Thomas has 42 points and 11 assists in his first 2 games with the Celtics.
-The Celtics made a season-high 14 3-pointers. They shot 48% from beyond the arc while the Suns made only 9-32 (28.1%)