Brown nets 28, Celtics use 3rd-quarter run to beat Magic

Orlando, FL, Nov. 4 (US) – Al Horford wasn’t calling the Boston Celtics meal “the only player meeting,” but said the team had discussed in detail their expectations for Wednesday’s game against the Orlando Magic.

The Celtics then came out and bolstered their talk with their best defensive effort of the season in a 92-79 defeat by the Magic, the Associated Press reports.

Jaylen Brown scored 28 points and used the Celtics 18-1 early in the second half to break the opener of a tight game. Boston, which saw goalkeeper Marcus Smart criticize teammates Jason Tatum and Brown following Monday’s loss to Chicago, limited Orlando to 10 points in the third quarter.

“A gathering, a team dinner – it was just nice to break bread together and hang out,” Horford said of Tuesday’s session in which coach Im Odoka left the players alone for about 30 minutes to clear up their differences. “Most importantly, we talked about making sure we got out and had a good walk. Defensively, I felt like we took some steps.”

Jayson Tatum added 14 points as the Celtics cut a three-game losing streak and defeated Magic for the seventh time in a row over the past three seasons. Boston scored 11 of its first 17 shots in the second half.

“We talked about their second 18-point quarter and we wanted to have some carryover,” Odoka said. “We wanted to seal the paint off and have them hit us with a jump shot.”

Horford scored 12 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists for the Celtics, who won despite shooting 41.8% from the field. Brown made 12 of 17 shots and made his fifth 20-point game this season.

Wendell Carter Jr. scored 13 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for Magic, who remained unbeaten at home. The Magic scored 28 points in the first 12 minutes to lead the first quarter of the season. However, they only rallied 33 after the break.

“In that third quarter, we were frustrated when our actions weren’t working,” Carter said. “We were catching the first ball instead of hitting the second side. That’s immaturity.”

Late 46-44 after a slow first half, Boston came back alive offensively in the third quarter, escaping the cold magic. By the time Orlando missed 14 of the first 15 shots of the third period, Boston had built a comfortable 69-50 lead.

smart talk

Odoka said he had no problem with Smart calling up Tatum and Brown for what he saw as an unwillingness to share the ball in Boston’s fourth-quarter meltdown on Monday. After all, Odoka said, Smart only mentioned what he says to players on a daily basis.

“I’ve been recommending it since day one with Jason and Jaylene, and it’s just that they become playmakers,” Odoka said. “Marcus, Jason and Jaylen have a long history together, and every team I’ve ever been on had moments when they saw themselves. Nothing we didn’t talk about.”

Odoka said the Celtics’ sluggish start to the season is more a result of their inability to finish matches than any player’s selfishness.

“We lost two games of overtime where Jason had a successful shot against New York and Jaylen had a chance to win it over Washington, and then the last game we were over 19, the record is one thing, but it’s a big ‘image approach,’” Odoka said. Be 4-3, 5-2, and there will probably be no questions about (the log). But the fact that we’re not done, you’re going to get those questions, and 2-5 just isn’t up to the level or where we’d like to be.”

Hints

Celtics: Smart, Boston’s best 1v1 defender, started on Cole Anthony and shadowed Orlando’s top scorer for most of the game. Anthony had only four shots out of 18 and scored only 13 points.

Magic: With an average age of 21 years and 213 days, the Magic’s starting fifth for the season opener was the youngest player in the NBA since 1970-71. They’ve used this lineup in each of their first nine games, and remarkably, Wednesday came in with the highest net offensive rating in the NBA (plus 20.5 points in 96 minutes together).

the following

Celtics: In Miami on Thursday night.

Magic: Host San Antonio on Friday night.