HERO BACK: Jaylen Brown shows off his ‘OUTSTANDING SKILL’ leading Celtics beat Magic 114–97

The Orlando Magic were defeated 114–97 on Sunday, with Jaylen Brown scoring 17 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter. Now, the Celtics have a 14-0 home record, which leads the NBA.

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The Celtics’ home start is now their second-best. The greatest was the Bill Russell-led squad from 1957–58, which won 17 games in a row following their first of 17 NBA titles that season.

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For Boston, Jrue Holiday scored 14 points, Jayson Tatum scored 23, and Kristaps Porzingis scored 15 points while grabbing ten rebounds. They defeated the Magic in all three of their meetings at TD Garden, extending their winning streak to five games.

Jaylen Brown carries Celtics to 114-97 win over Magic

Orlando was led by Paulo Banchero, who finished with 36 points and 10 rebounds. Jalen Suggs scored 13 points for the Magic, who shot only 38.2%.

NBA Buzz on X: "Boston Celtics improve to an NBA-best 20-5 after beating  Orlando, 114-97! ️ Jaylen Brown: 31 PTS, 6 AST, 5 REB, 12/20 FGM, 5/8 3PM  Paolo Banchero: 36 PTS,

Al Horford and Porzingis returned to Boston’s starting lineup after missing the team’s 17-point victory on Friday. Horford, 37, was forced to miss the game due to a leg injury he sustained during a game the previous evening.

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Ten of the first twelve points scored by Brown helped the Celtics maintain their nine-point lead into the fourth quarter. He made a 3-pointer, for instance, from the right corner and the top of the key. In addition, he made jumpers from the foul line and the left sideline.

With 6:25 remaining in the game, he converted his third basket during a break, giving Boston a 103-86 advantage. He converted a fadeaway from the right side to cap off an incredible final quarter.

In the midst of the second quarter, Tatum received his third foul as Magic coach Jamahl Mosley contested a blocking call on Franz Wagner. That didn’t, however, lessen the Celtics’ offensive power.

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The Celtics just went on a tear with Tatum sitting at the end of the bench.

Celtics shift to Jaylen Brown as playmaker and double-big to beat Magic  114-97 - CelticsBlog

With 5:48 remaining in the half, Banchero’s jump shot tied the score at 41. However, Brown scored nine points in a nearly five-minute 20-5 surge that put the Celtics ahead 61-50 at the half.

Zone defense was attempted by the Magic during that period, but it was unable to halt Boston’s offensive.