The Celtics battled, but they lost 114-108 to the Blazers on Sunday in Portland, Oregon. The loss snapped a four-game Boston winning streak with the C’s falling to 19-12. The Blazers also snapped a three-game losing streak to get to 13-19.
It was a close game Sunday with the Celtics unable to pull away at any point. Each time it looked like the C’s could have stretched their lead further, the Blazers responded in impressive fashion.
While the Celtics and Blazers battled late, the miscues and misses piled up for Boston. The C’s committed 19 turnovers, including some late back-breaking ones. It all added up to a clutch loss for the Celtics on Sunday.
Jaylen Brown led the way with 37 points, including matching a Larry Bird streak (more on that below). Hugo Gonzalez added 13 points off the bench. Deni Avdija had 24 points and 10 assists for the Blazers, while Donovan Clingan posted 18 points and 18 rebounds.
The Celtics continue their five-game road trip as they face the Jazz at 9 p.m. Tuesday in Utah for their next game. Here are four takeaways from Boston’s loss to Portland:
Streak matched: Brown came into the game having scored at least 30-plus points in his last eight games. After his stellar scoring night Sunday, he matched C’s legend Larry Bird with nine straight games scoring 30-plus points. Brown was on fire in the first half, scoring 27 points and talking plenty of trash against the Blazers. The All-Star has enjoyed a career-best season scoring the ball, and he showed off why he’s been so dangerous Sunday. He finished with 37 points, seven rebounds and four assists, shooting 14-for-24 from the field Sunday.
Cold shooting night: The Celtics couldn’t overcome a tough night from beyond the arc, shooting 13-for-45 (28.9%) on 3-pointers. But the turnovers were also too careless as they committed 19 of them Sunday. The Blazers kept the door cracked open as they shot 12-for-21 (57.1%) on free throws plus they committed 21 turnovers themselves. But the C’s couldn’t generate enough stops. It went down as a tough night for the Celtics on the second game of their five-game road trip.
Look at the wings: While Jordan Walsh got the start, it was another night where Gonzalez heavily affected the game. The rookie was all over the court with 13 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals in his 30 minutes. Josh Minott has fallen out of the rotation in recent games even with the Celtics going small for stretches Sunday, which included crunch-time minutes late. That’s where Gonzalez has gotten some burn even when the Blazers had a big man on the court.
Homecoming night: Anfernee Simons played in front of the Portland crowd for the first time since being traded last summer. Simons was included in the Jrue Holiday deal, though Holiday was out Sunday with a calf injury. Simons played the first seven years of his NBA career in Portland before getting traded. The Blazers provided a feel-good welcome back video with Simons in town for the lone time this season. He finished with 13 points and three rebounds, shooting 4-for-11 from the field.