Trailing by six at the half, the Celtics were hanging around with one of the best teams in the Western Conference, but the second half was where the Trail Blazers showed just how good they really are as a 33-point third quarter led them to a 109-96 win over the Celtics at TD Garden Friday night. It was the second straight loss for the Celtics.
Despite the loss, Jared Sullinger had arguably his best game as a professional finishing with a career-high 26 points and eight rebounds off the bench. Starters Jeff Green added 14 points, while Jordan Crawford had 11.
The Celtics had a hard time keeping LaMarcus Aldrige in check as he had a double-double, finishing with 27 points and 12 rebounds. The Trail Blazers had five players reach double-figures in points and used some big three-pointers in the second half to pull away from the home team.
There won't be much time to dwell on the loss for the Celtics as they travel to Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves Saturday night (8, CSNNE).
What they'll be saying: It was good to see Sullinger have a game like this after missing Wednesday night's game with a knee injury. The second-year player seems to be coming into his own and improving more and more as each day passes. The Celtics did a good job in the paint, outscoring the Trail Blazers 44-36, but were out rebounded 47-34. Things don't get any easier for the Celtics as they will play three straight games on the road with the Rockets and Spurs on tap after Minnesota.
