Boston Celtics 2017 Playoffs: Isaiah Thomas Steals Headlines But Al Horford Came Up Clutch in Game 4
The Boston Celtics controlled Game 4 to tie their first-round series with the Bulls at 2-2. Isaiah Thomas will get all the headlines, but Al Horford came up clutch.
The Boston Celtics defeated the Chicago Bulls tonight 104-95, regaining their home court advantage and making it a best of 3 series.
Isaiah Thomas was phenomenal all night, especially from the middle of the third quarter on. One other Celtics player though, Al Horford, was just as clutch.
Horford finished the game with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists. His night didn’t start off so hot, however.
Through the first half, Horford had just 2 points. In fact, Al posted a double-double in just the second half of the game. His play of the night came in the 4th quarter about halfway through when he dropped the hammer on Chicago.
HORFORD 🔨 https://t.co/yjnVjbvWGu
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) April 24, 2017
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Over the course of the season, some have said that Horford routinely disappears late in games. That wasn’t the case at all tonight and he should have silenced some haters. Horford has averaged 13.0 points and 8.4 rebounds per game in his NBA playoff career with Atlanta and Boston. Those are respectable numbers that give the Celtics a chance to win each night with the talents of Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley, and Marcus Smart.
The Boston Celtics will need Horford to continue to play at this level for them to make a deep playoff run. For now, it seems like Boston is finding their rhythm and the rest of this Chicago series should go their way.
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Game 5 of this first-round series will be played back in Boston on Wednesday. The Celtics will look to win there, and then wrap things up in Game 6 in Chicago on Friday.