Jaylen Brown has finished with at least 25 points in eight straight games.
Jaylen Brown has finished with at least 25 points in eight straight games.Yuki Iwamura/Associated Press
After a memorable victory, the Celtics are back at it.
Torrid long-range shooting, including a clutch shot from Hugo Gonzalez, boosted the Celtics to victory in the first leg of a road back-to-back amid significant struggles on the glass.
The Celtics will hope to have a more complete effort as they visit the surging Bulls less than 24 hours after a 130-126 double-overtime win in Brooklyn.
Boston squandered chances against the Nets down the stretch of regulation and in overtime and was out-rebounded 58-41. A 22-for-51 effort from beyond the arc -- highlighted by six 3-pointers from Payton Pritchard and five from Sam Hauser -- proved to be the difference.
Pritchard paced the Celtics with 32 points while Jaylen Brown (27) and Hauser (19) followed to lead six players in double figures.
Here’s the preview:
When: Saturday, 8 p.m.
Where: United Center, Chicago
TV, radio: NBCSB, WROR-FM 105.7
Line: Chicago -1. O/U: 230.0.
CELTICS
Season record: 28-16. vs. spread: 25-19. Over/under: 19-25
Last 10 games: 6-4. vs. spread: 5-5. Over/under: 3-7
BULLS
Season record: 22-22. vs. spread: 21-21, 2 pushes. Over/under: 20-24
Last 10 games: 5-5. vs. spread: 5-5. Over/under: 4-6
TEAM STATISTICS
Points per game: Boston 117.1, Chicago 118.0
Points allowed per game: Boston 110.2, Chicago 119.9
Field goal percentage: Boston .471, Chicago .476
Opponent field goal percentage: Boston .446, Chicago .473
3-point percentage: Boston .370, Chicago .366
Opponent 3-point percentage: Boston .362, Chicago .368
Stat of the day: Brown, the team’s top scorer at 29.8 points per game, has finished with at least 25 points in eight straight games and 10 of 11 contests in January. The only outlier? A 14-point showing in a Jan. 5 home win against the Bulls.
Notes: Chicago enters on a three-game winning streak and is coming off Thursday’s 120-115 victory at Minnesota. It was a win that guard Josh Giddey said “gives us momentum moving forward.” ... Giddey put up 21 off the bench in his first action since sustaining a hamstring injury in a home loss to Minnesota on Dec. 29. ... Chicago went 6-5 in Giddey’s absence and is aiming to climb over .500 for the first time since Nov. 24. The Bulls will look to do so without Tre Jones, who notched a pair of points-assists double-doubles in the past three games but will be re-evaluated in two weeks with a left hamstring strain. ... Boston can secure the season series with a victory. The Celtics won the previous meeting 115-101 behind a 27-point effort from Anfernee Simons. Nikola Vucevic has grabbed at least 10 boards in five straight games against the Celtics. ... Boston has won eight of the past 10 in the series, including three straight overall and four in a row at the United Center in Chicago.
Cam Kerry can be reached at cam.kerry@globe.com.