Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown fueled a 31-3 run that helped the Boston Celtics put the skids on the NBA’s hottest team with a 105-87 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.
The Nuggets looked well on their way to their ninth straight victory when they took a 79-65 lead in the third quarter on a 3-pointer by Facundo Campazzo.
Boston outscored the Nuggets 40-8 the rest of the way. The Celtics had been held to 16 first-quarter points and trailed by 14 early on.
Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum, right, pulls in a rebound as Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic defends in the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 11, 2021, in Denver. (AP PhotoDavid Zalubowski)
Brown started the epic run with a nifty bucket and Tatum provided the biggest highlights, including eight straight points on a trio of free throws, a jumper and a 3-pointer.
Tatum finished with 28 points two days after a career-best 53-point performance against Minnesota, and Brown had 20. Tatum (illness) and Brown (sore left knee) starred despite being listed as questionable before tip-off.
Michael Porter Jr. led Denver with 20 points. Nikola Jokic had 17 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds.
HAWKS 105, HORNETS 101
Bogdan Bogdanovic scored 32 points on a career-high eight 3-pointers and the Atlanta Hawks battled back from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to beat the Charlotte Hornets 105-101 ON Sunday without Trae Young.
Clint Capela added 20 points and 15 rebounds for the surging Hawks. They have won six of seven to take sole possession of fourth place in the Eastern Conference.
The short-handed Hawks won despite Young (left calf contusion) and reserve Danilo Gallinari (right foot soreness) sitting out along with John Collins, De’Andre Hunter, Cam Reddish, Tony Snell and Kris Dunn.
Miles Bridges led the Hornets with 23 points.