BRISTOL, Mass. (AP) β The Boston Celtics won 155-104 on Wednesday night to remain unblemished, thanks to Jayson Tatum’s 30 points and 12 rebounds in less than three quarters.
The 155 points were the franchise’s second-highest total in a regular-season game.
One game after destroying the Wizards in Washington, the Celtics returned home and annihilated the Pacers, jumping out to a 10-point lead in the first three minutes, increasing it to 20 in the second, 30 in the third, and 53 in the fourth.
Before the Celtics walked to the bench late in the third quarter with a 38-point advantage, Derrick White had 18 points and Jaylen Brown had 16. In extended minutes off the bench, Sam Hauser scored 17 points and Payton Pritchard added 15.
T.J. McConnell scored 18 points for the Pacers, who were without point guard Tyrese Halliburton, who turned his ankle after stepping on Jalen Smith’s foot in a defeat to the Bulls on Monday. Smith (knee) also missed practice on Wednesday.
Tatum scored four points and three rebounds during the first-quarter 14-0 surge that turned a two-point deficit into an 18-6 advantage. White nailed a pair of 3-pointers at the close of the first quarter, when Boston scored 18 of the final 25 points to take a 44-27 lead.
Indiana never got closer than 14 points after that, trailing by 30 or more for the next 21 minutes and down by 50 with 4 1/2 minutes remaining.
Notes: In the first quarter, the Celtics shot 76% (16 of 21) from the field. They hit eight three-pointers… For the second game in a row, the Celtics led at halftime with 75 points. According to the team, this is the first time back-to-back games have been played since at least the 1950-51 season. Indiana shot 5 for 37 from outside the arc and was outrebounded 58-31.