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The 2022-23 Boston Celtics have grow to be the basketball equal of a rollercoaster experience. Simply over every week after their largest win of the season, 139-118 over Milwaukee, sparked some momentum, they’ve as soon as once more discovered themselves at a low level. The Oklahoma City Thunder will not be almost as dangerous proper now as they’ve been in latest seasons, however of their listless 150-117 defeat to the younger squad, the Celtics recorded their most irritating lack of the season.
Each groups entered tonight’s sport shorthanded. Robert Williams III sat for the Celtics, as they proceed to handle his surgically repaired knee, whereas the Thunder had been with out the providers of famous person guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (non-Covid sickness) and rising teen Aleksej Pokusevski (non-displaced tibial fracture). For Boston, Jaylen Brown paced the crew with 29 factors, however recorded a team-worst plus-minus of -28, emblematic of the crew’s absent protection. The Thunder, in the meantime, poured in factors, with seven gamers hitting double-digits in scoring, together with a whopping 5 with a minimum of 20 (Josh Giddey, Lu Dort, Jalen Williams, Isaiah Joe, Tre Mann).
Brown took the helm of the offense within the early going, scoring 10 first quarter factors, and Marcus Good rapidly made some highlights, with a put-back dunk and a particularly Good-like defensive cease on a 3-on-1 quick break for the Thunder. By and huge, nevertheless, the Celtics seemed like a crew that took their opponent too calmly. The primary quarter protection was extremely leaky, even with the Thunder missing their offensive engine. A 13-5 run late within the first stored the Celtics within the combine, however 50% taking pictures from the sector for Oklahoma Metropolis stored them behind after one, 34-33.
The Boston run to finish the primary quarter was, itself, rapidly erased because the second started, because the Thunder opened the quarter with a 13-5 run of their very own to place the Celtics’ deficit proper again to 9. This time, the following minutes didn’t fairly put issues proper. Oklahoma Metropolis’s taking pictures share continued to tick upwards, they usually almost doubled up the Celtics’ scoring output within the body, 40-21, to take a stunning 74-54 halftime lead.
There isn’t a lot of curiosity to be stated concerning the second half. Any hopes of a comeback had been rapidly dashed because the third quarter started — 1 / 4 wherein the Thunder scored a jaw-dropping 48 factors, capped off by a very unbothered coast-to-coast dunk from Thunder rookie Jalen Williams. Coach Joe Mazzulla emptied the bench because the fourth quarter started, as he ought to have. This sport was over.
Subsequent up, the Celtics will keep on with their miniature West Coast street journey, taking part in their second of three straight video games on the opposite facet of the nation in opposition to the Dallas Mavericks this Thursday at 7:30 PM EST on TNT.
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