This is a scenario that we did not expect in this clash of extremes in the Eastern Conference as the Raptors, dead last, went to the court of the reigning champion (deprived of Jrue Holiday) on the second evening of a “back -to-back”. But that's what makes basketball beautiful, the Raptors having shaken the Celtics until the end!
Boston quickly went 12-0 to take control with 3-pointers from Derrick White and Al Horford to set the tone. Toronto did not crash, however, relying on the aggressiveness of RJ Barrett and Chris Boucher to put on the show (28-26).
Things started to take an unexpected turn shortly before the break, when the Raptors took the lead. Jakob Poeltl had kept his team in the game until this 11-2 fueled by a 3-pointer and an authoritarian lay-up from Davion Mitchell, on a serve from RJ Barrett (46-47). Once again, 3-pointers from Jayson Tatum and Al Horford saved appearances at the break (56-54), but Toronto was quick to return to the charge.
Jakob Poeltl kept up the pressure by making four baskets in a row, and the alley-oop between RJ Barrett and Bruno Fernando then placed the Raptors at +7 (65-72)! We then believed in the awakening of the locals when Payton Pritchard and Sam Hauser linked two 3-point baskets each to bring Boston back to +6 (82-76). But the Canadians were far from having said their last word. The Barrett-Boucher-Poeltl trio maintained the pressure until Chris Boucher's two 3-point baskets (99-102). As money time approached, Toronto was still alive!
RJ Barrett from afar and Davion Mitchell on a 2+1 allowed the Raptors to resist the heat from Al Horford (109-110). The last sequence could have turned in favor of the Celtics, when Jayson Tatum forced the turnover of Jakob Poeltl to end up with the ball of the match, and an open shot facing the circle after the fall of Ochai Agbaji who finished in airball (114-114)!
In overtime, Jaylen Brown held his team at arm's length by scoring twice at 3-points, and a counter on an unstoppable RJ Barrett, with the help of Neemias Queta, at 123-123. This time, Jayson Tatum was able to catch up on the last possession against Ochai Agbaji, taking responsibility by scoring at the buzzer to give his team the victory on the wire, 126-123.
WHAT TO REMEMBER
– Regrets for the Raptors. The planets seemed aligned for Toronto to manage to create a surprise, between RJ Barrett's first triple-double in the NBA (25 points, 10 rebounds, 15 assists), Jakob Poeltl's career record (35 points). It ended up being a hair's breadth away. Beyond Jayson Tatum's buzzer beater, the Raptors may regret this last possession in the last quarter, when Jakob Poeltl was unable to get the better of JT in the paint, ending up losing the ball. But what about the five missed free throws in the “money-time” of the fourth quarter?? RJ Barrett missed four, Jakob Poeltl one. Enough to rage a little more by thinking that just one of these five failures could have been enough…
– Al Horford's heat stroke. The Celtics veteran was again valuable, especially at the end of the fourth quarter, when Boston was desperately looking for scoring relays. Al Horford almost became the big hero of the evening by going for a 2+1, then hitting two 3-point baskets on balls well brought out by JT. “Big Al” was ultimately not the hero of the match but his contribution at that moment in the match weighed very heavily.
– Jayson Tatum saved by the bell. It is an understatement to say that JT had not particularly shone until then. Above all, the image of his airball at the end of the fourth quarter on a wide open mid-range shot, facing the circle, following the fall of Ochai Agbaji, could have haunted him all night. In difficulty shooting, the winger made up for it by distributing good balls, like his two assists for Al Horford. But above all, he made amends at the last second of overtime by scoring this 3-pointer which flirted with the ceiling of TD Garden before falling in the circle to trigger the hysteria of the entire room. Enough to completely save his match.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
