NEW YORK – The Boston Celtics, who lead the National Basketball Association (NBA) standings, have declared themselves a “very good team.”
Fueled by Jayson Tatum’s 32 points and 21 three-pointers, they held off a 37-point triple-double from Luka Doncic to beat the Dallas Mavericks 138-110 on March 1 and extend their NBA winning streak to 10 games .
Tatum took a while to warm up, missing all four of his shots in the first quarter, but the All-Star forward scored 16 in the third quarter as the Celtics took control at home.
“Simply put, we have a very good team,” he said as Boston became the first team this season to win 10 straight.
“Every night will be a little different. But as long as we continue to form good habits and win, everything will work itself out.
Trailing by seven points at halftime, the Mavs came back to two points midway through the third.
But Jaylen Brown and Tatum connected on straight three-pointers and the Celtics pulled away relentlessly.
Brown scored 25 points and Kristaps Porzingis, who carried the offensive load early, added 24 as seven Boston players scored in double figures.
They simply outplayed the Mavs, despite Doncic’s 12th triple-double of the season. The Slovenian added 12 rebounds and 11 assists and Kyrie Irving scored 19 points despite only making nine of 23 shot attempts.
“We know if we play the game the right way, there are a lot of options,” Brown said. “We have confidence in the game plan and we have confidence in our ability to read the game. And we did it almost all year.
Elsewhere, the Golden State Warriors extended their road winning streak to eight games with a 120-105 win over the Raptors in Toronto.
Stephen Curry scored 25 points and Jonathan Kuminga added 24 for the Warriors, who found themselves delayed six hours at the airport after their victory against the New York Knicks on February 29.
“A fantastic win,” said Golden State coach Steve Kerr, who took his team to task after seeing them sleepwalk through the opening minutes, in part due to travel fatigue.
“Last night was brutal – it was the worst travel circumstance I’ve ever been involved in in the NBA.”
RJ Barrett led Toronto’s scoring with 23 points. All-Star Scottie Barnes had 10 points and six rebounds before leaving late in the first half with a left hand injury.
In another game, Cleveland guard Darius Garland made eight three-pointers to fuel the short-handed Cavaliers in a 110-100 victory over the Pistons in Detroit.
With Donovan Mitchell and Caris LeVert sidelined due to injuries, Garland scored a game-high 29 points. Evan Mobley added 22 points and 17 rebounds for the Cavs, who led by 26 early in the fourth quarter.
That lead dwindled to just seven points before Cleveland sealed it at the free throw line.
Cade Cunningham scored 21 points and distributed 10 assists for the Pistons, who suffered their 50th loss of the season. AFP
