Jaylen Brown dropped 32 points to lift the Boston Celtics against the Golden State Warriors with a 120-99 win on Wednesday night.
Jayson Tatum added 24 points and 10 rebounds to win three straight, his third double-double, and fifth time scoring at least 20 points in six games after recovering from an Achilles tendon injury.
The Warriors tried to cut a 21-point third-quarter cushion to 11 early in the fourth, but the Celtics responded with a 17-6 run to push the lead back to 22 with just more than five minutes to play.
Gary Payton II and Pat Spencer both had 14 points to lead the Warriors, who have lost six of seven. Draymond Green and Gui Santots scored 13 each.
They were now 6-13 since Stephen Curry was sidelined with a right knee injury.
Kristaps Porzingis finished with 11 points and five rebounds, as he played for the first time in TD Garden since winning a championship with Boston to cap the 2023-24 season.
A fan favorite during his two seasons with the Celtics, Porzingis received a standing ovation when a tribute video to him was played on the jumbotron between the first and second quarters.
Porzingis opened the game by blocking Tatum’s layup attempt and Neemias Queta’s putback on the Celtics first possession.
Boston continued with their burst from taking a 63-50 lead into halftime, as Brown and Tatum combined for 39 points.
Both teams will play road games on Friday: the Warriors visit Detroit, while the Celtics visit Memphis.
