The Boston Celtics came into Monday's game against the Los Angeles Lakers struggling. The team had lost six of their last eight games and were quickly sliding down the Eastern Conference standings.
For whatever reason, Boston was able to flip the switch on Monday and rode 67 combined points from Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Kemba Walker to a 139-107 blowout win.
After a close first quarter, the Celtics opened up the lead in the second quarter and never really looked back. With the Lakers having the best record in the Western Conference, a comeback effort of sorts was expected. It never happened and Lakers superstar Anthony Davis knows why.
“We didn’t rebound. Offensive rebounds killed us. We had some turnovers. They were more physical. They just basically did whatever they want the whole night and we didn’t respond, so we can’t do afford to do that especially on the road against a team like this… or against any team,” Davis said per Spectrum SportsNet. We gotta make sure we come out and be the one that’s aggressive. We’re hitting guys first, we’re rebounding the basketball and running. That’s when we’re at our best.
Despite his stellar season with the Lakers, Davis was largely held in check by the Celtics defense. The six-time All-Star finished the game with just nine points and four rebounds in 23 minutes due to foul trouble. The Celtics also held superstar LeBron James to just 15 points as well.
The loss to their rivals brings the Lakers to 34-9 on the season. Still in the driver's seat in the West, the Lakers are now just 3.5 games ahead of the Los Angeles Clippers in second.
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