Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics posted a thrashing of division rivals Brooklyn to strengthen their position on top of the NBA’s Eastern Conference standings.
The Celtics led 46-16 after the first period at TD Garden on Thursday (AEDT), with Tatum contributing 18 points to outscore the visitors on his own.
It tied Boston’s best point differential for any quarter in the shot-clock era, which began in 1954.
The Celtics’ maintained a lead of 30-plus points throughout the entire second half and reached a game-high margin of 49 in the comprehensive 139-96 win.
Tatum, who finished with 31 points, was well supported by Jaylen Brown (26) and Robert Williams III (16).
Tatum and Brown contributed 25-plus points each in the same game for the 27th time this season – the most by any pair prior to the All-Star break in NBA history.
Melbourne-born guard Kyrie Irving top-scored for the Nets with 20 points against his former team, while Patty Mills had four points, two assists and a steal in almost 18 minutes on the court.
The Celtics’ big win came after they split a pair of overtime games and improved their record to 37-15, while leaving Brooklyn at 31-20.
“After the last couple of games we had going into overtime … a couple of days off did us well,” Tatum told ESPN.
“We were just refreshed and were locked in and just ready to go from the start.
“Obviously we knocked down shots but we had great intentions throughout the whole game.”
Damian Lillard grabbed his own slice of NBA history when he posted 42 points and 10 assists in Portland’s 122-112 win over Memphis.
It was Lillard’s 15th career game with at least 40 points and 10 assists – the fifth-most of all time.
Ja Morant had 32 points and 12 assists for the Grizzlies.
The NBA postponed Detroit’s home game against Washington because the Pistons have been unable to fly home from Dallas, where severe weather conditions have grounded flights.
A date for the rescheduled game has not yet been confirmed.
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