Since training camp, head coach Joe Mazzulla has said one of the strengths of the 2025-26 Celtics is their depth.
That certainly was the case Sunday night as Boston’s bench delivered its best all-around performance of the season in a 111-107 win over the Magic.
Anfernee Simons? He was volcanic during a 25-point first half, which included a streak of 17 straight Celtics points.
Luka Garza? He scored 14 of his season-high-tying 16 points after halftime on 7-of-8 shooting, repeatedly punishing Orlando’s defense with putbacks. The backup big man’s eight rebounds (in just 17 minutes) were his most in a game since his rookie season in 2021-22.
Hugo Gonzalez again created havoc as a high-energy defender. Eight of the Magic’s 17 turnovers occurred with the rookie on the floor, including two Gonzalez steals, and Boston outscored Orlando by 19 points over his 13 minutes.
And Jordan Walsh, the low man on the Celtics’ depth chart in several games earlier this season, continued his recent resurgence with six points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals. Walsh played the entire fourth quarter and buried both of his 3-point attempts, including one from the corner that iced the game with 13.2 seconds remaining.
Walsh has logged at least 18 minutes in each of the Celtics’ last three games and is a plus-43 during that span.
Garza, Gonzalez and Walsh all were on the court early in the fourth quarter as Boston turned a one-point deficit into an 11-point lead.
“It’s a credit to those guys,” Mazzulla told reporters after the game. “They delivered.”
All told, Boston’s reserves outscored Orlando’s 50-18 and outrebounded them 20-10, helping the Celtics secure a split in their two-game weekend series at the Kia Center.
Simons, Garza, Gonzalez and Walsh shot a combined 18-for-25 from the field (72.0%) and 8-for-12 from 3-point range (66.7%).
“I thought they were good tonight,” Jaylen Brown, who scored 27 points in the win, told reporters in Orlando. “Big-time win for us. That was a good Orlando team, physical team that plays really well at home in the regular season. To have our guys on the road make some big-time plays, some of our young guys step up, that’s what I want to see. Luka Garza was great tonight. Jordan, Hugo. Anfernee started to step into himself a little bit, too. So all great signs.”