Jaylen Brown scored 30 points and the Boston Celtics held off the Toronto Raptors 121-113 on Sunday night at Scotiabank Arena after nearly surrendering a 23-point advantage.
Boston moved to 15-9 with its fifth straight victory and seventh in eight games.
Derrick White added 27 points and hit six 3-pointers, including 14 in the opening quarter as the Celtics built early separation.
Payton Pritchard contributed 15 points, while Anfernee Simons added 12 off the bench in a balanced performance that featured 20 made threes on 47 attempts.
Neemias Queta recorded 11 points and 11 rebounds, helping Boston finish with a 17-4 edge in second-chance scoring.
The Raptors fell to 15-10 and dropped their third straight home game after beginning the year without consecutive home losses.
Brandon Ingram matched Brown with 30 points, and Scottie Barnes posted 18 points and 11 rebounds, but Toronto’s comeback stalled late.
Boston led 87-64 following a Pritchard 3-pointer midway through the third quarter before Toronto responded with a 34-10 run.
Jamal Shead’s layup with 10:39 remaining gave the Raptors their first lead of the night, completing a surge that erased what had been the Celtics’ largest cushion.
Boston had not trailed in a game since the first half of Tuesday’s win over New York, following wire-to-wire victories at Washington and at home against the Lakers.
Two straight threes from White and Pritchard swung momentum back to the Celtics with 7:15 left, breaking a 98-95 deficit and restoring control.
Boston never trailed again, closing the night by hitting timely perimeter shots and limiting Toronto to one shot per possession in the final minutes.
The Celtics’ long-range volume again played a central role after they hit a season-high 24 threes against the Lakers on Friday.
Toronto went just 9-for-22 from deep, finishing with fewer made threes than Boston had offensive rebounds.
Sandro Mamukelashvili scored 14 points for the Raptors, while Ochai Agbaji and Immanuel Quickley each added 11.
AJ Lawson and Jakob Poeltl contributed 10 apiece, but Toronto could not counter Boston’s outside shooting or second-chance production.
The Raptors have now lost five of their last six entering Tuesday’s NBA Cup quarterfinal against New York.
Boston will continue its road trip on Thursday in Milwaukee.
