LOS ANGELES — Pat Riley set the tempo, the tone of Lakers-Celtics in Sunday evening primetime on NBC.
Riley, 80, but still fiery as ever when it comes to seeing the Boston Celtics green-and-white jerseys running up and down the floor, sent the crowd at his statue unveiling into a rivalry-inclined cheer when he rallied on about it being “time to kick some Boston ass.”
The fire, years of Boston and L.A. in marquee postseason matchups, etched its latest chapter with a 111-89 defeat for the Lakers (34-22), where the exasperation of Sunday officiating left the Lakers chirping more at the officials than at where Riley – in Showtime Lakers-era fashion – directed his mental thunder: the Celtics.
Chirping began early. Marcus Smart and Austin Reaves earned a pair of technical fouls in the second quarter after Celtics small forward Jaylen Brown sent an elbow into Smart’s face on his way to the rim as Boston grasped a 36-33 lead. The Celtics only grew their advantage from there after Celtics guard Payton Pritchard sunk a 3-pointer, spinning Luka Doncic around for a step-back buzzer-beater for a 10-point lead before halftime.
Brown finished with 32 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, making his keep at the charity stripe (9 for 12 from the free-throw line). Meanwhile, Pritchard shot 6 of 9 from beyond the arc off the bench for 30 points, helping extend the Celtics’ lead to as many as 22 points. The Celtics, who shoot the third-most 3-pointers in the NBA, converted 38.9% of their looks (14 for 36) on Sunday.
Coach JJ Redick later earned a technical himself – the team’s third of the game – after expressing displeasure over an uncalled goaltending courtesy of Celtics center Neemias Queta. Redick hopped up and down, grabbing at the net in front of officials to try and prove his point.
Luka Doncic paced the Lakers on Sunday evening, recording 25 points on 9-of-22 shooting. Eight of the Slovenian star’s points arrived in the first quarter when the Lakers held pat with the Celtics, knotting the game at 28 after Reaves produced a nifty shot fake to get Celtics guard Hugo Gonzalez in the air.
Reaves nailed all three free throws, a part of his 15-point performance on a 4-of-10 shooting night.
On the other side of the rivalry, Joe Mazzulla, Boston coach, answered pregame questions over whether he was tired of hearing about whether foes were surprised at his Celtics’ success, considering their trade-deadline movement and star Jayson Tatum’s season-long absence. He said, yes, it’s two-fold – appreciating the gratitude, but also recognizing that his team, often led by Brown, Pritchard, and guard Derrick White (12 points) in scoring, is still finding ways to win.
The Lakers did make a late surge, using a layup from LeBron James and a leaning hook shot from Rui Hachimura over Celtics center Nikola Vucevic to cut the Celtics’ lead to single digits at 86-77 with under 10 minutes to go. But after Mazzulla called timeout, Brown stamped victory on the Crypto.com court.
The 29-year-old, averaging nearly-30 points per game, drew contact from Doncic for an and-one bucket, fired home a 3-pointer and even when he missed from the corner with 3:37 remaining, Pritchard picked up the pieces for his sixth 3 to put the Celtics up 105-83.
As the Celtics (37-19) put the finishing touches on the game, the visiting crowd grew louder – with “Let’s go Celtics” chants – Riley’s courtside seat lay dormant.
Notes
During Sunday’s game, James became the first-and-only player in NBA history to record 43,000-career points. …
Center Jaxson Hayes exited the game with 1:55 remaining in the first quarter with a right ankle injury. The Lakers ruled Hayes out during halftime.
Related Articles
Lakers unveil statue of legendary coach Pat Riley in Sunday ceremony Marcus Smart’s leadership inspires Lakers’ first post-All-Star victory Luka Doncic’s 38-point night helps Lakers hold off Clippers Lakers’ Luke Kennard emphasizes communication in return to L.A. Lakers expect completely healthy roster for Friday’s game against ClippersHence then, the article about lakers can t match pat riley s message in loss to celtics was published today ( ) and is available on The Orange County Register ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Lakers can’t match Pat Riley’s message in loss to Celtics )
Also on site :