CHICAGO — Jayson Tatum scored 26 points, Sam Hauser and Al Horford added 23 each, and the NBA-leading Boston Celtics earned their ninth straight victory, 124-113 over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.
Hauser made seven of Boston’s 21 3-pointers, while Horford hit 5 of 10 from beyond the arc. Derrick White scored 17. Payton Pritchard added 15 points and eight assists, and the Celtics were able to make it two straight wins in their best streak of the season, even though Jaylen Brown (sprained right ankle) and Kristaps Porzingis (right hamstring) missed the game.
Boston scored nine straight to go up eight early in the fourth quarter and held on until the end. It was a six-point game when Luke Kornet scored on a tip-in and Tatum made a layup, making the score 117-107 with 3:04 left.
DeMar DeRozan led Chicago with 26 points. Alex Caruso, Nikola Vucevic and Ayo Dosunmu each scored 14 points as the Bulls lost their second straight game.
Chicago’s Dalen Terry got the crowd roaring late in the third quarter with a thunderous dunk off a missed DeRozan jumper to give the Bulls a one-point lead. They led 92-91 in the final minute of the quarter when Pritchard made a one-finger layup and two free throws to start a nine-point spurt for Boston. Hauser capped the scoring with a 3 in the first minute of the fourth to make it 100-92.
Tatum scored 19 points and Sam Hauser added 14 points as hot-shooting Boston took a 66-60 halftime lead.
The Celtics made 13 of 27 3-pointers, with Hauser hitting 4 of 5 and Horford scoring three. Tatum buried a step-back jumper and a 3 to make it 66-55 with just over a minute to play, before Vucevic made a hook shot for Chicago and White connected from beyond the arc to make it a six-point game.
The Bulls signed guard/forward Javonte Green to a 10-day contract, bringing him back for a second stint with the team. Green spent parts of three seasons in Chicago after being acquired from Boston in a three-team trade involving Washington in March 2021. He played in 10 games this season for Golden State’s G League affiliate.
FOLLOWING
Celtics: Visit Atlanta on Monday.
Bulls: Host Washington on Monday.
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