NBA: Marcus Smart's fourth-quarter surge helps Celtics beat Raptors

Marcus Smart scored eight of his 21 points in the fourth quarter and added eight rebounds and six assists as the visiting Boston Celtics defeated the Toronto Raptors 109-97 on Sunday night.

Al Horford added 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Celtics, who ended a two-game losing streak.

Jayson Tatum was held to eight points, but had 10 assists for the Celtics, who have won two of their three games with the Raptors.

Josh Richardson contributed 18 points for the Celtics, Jaylen Brown added 16 points, Grant Williams 15 and Enes Kanter had nine points and 10 rebounds.

Fred VanVleet had 27 points for the Raptors, who dropped to 2-7 in home games. Scottie Barnes added 21 points for Toronto and Pascal Siakam had 18, and Svi Mykhailiuk 12.

Boston had a four-point lead after the third quarter and scored the first four points of the fourth quarter before Toronto cut the lead to one. Boston responded with a 9-0 run capped by Smart's 3-pointer with 7:27 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Boston's lead reached 13 on Smart's 3-pointer with 6:21 to play. Richardson's driving layup with 2:31 to play restored the 13-point lead.

The Celtics led 27-26 after the first quarter.

The Celtics scored the first eight points of the second quarter, six by Richardson. Toronto cut the lead to one point on Siakam's dunk with 5:38 remaining in the first half. Horford's 3-pointer with 2:27 remaining completed a 7-0 run that gave Boston an eight-point lead. The Celtics led 54-51 at halftime.

VanVleet scored the first three points of the second half to tie the game. Toronto took a 71-70 lead on VanVleet's 3-pointer with 5:09 to play in the third quarter. The game was tied again when Horford made a seven-footer with 3:02 remaining. 

The Celtics scored the next five points, including Smart's 3-pointer. The lead reached six and Boston led 80-76 after three quarters. The score was tied six times in the quarter.

The Raptors were without OG Anunoby (hip pointer), Khem Birch (knee) and Gary Trent Jr.

The Celtics were without Robert Williams (illness) and Dennis Schroder (ankle).

-reuters

NBA: Celtics use huge second-half run to topple Jokic, Nuggets

Jayson Tatum had 28 points and 10 rebounds, Jaylen Brown finished with 20 points and eight rebounds and the visiting Boston Celtics rallied to beat the Denver Nuggets 105-87 on Sunday.

Marcus Smart and Kemba Walker scored 14 each and Robert Williams III scored 10 points for the Celtics, who went on a 31-3 run in the third and fourth quarters.

Nikola Jokic had 17 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, Michael Porter Jr. had 22 points and 11 rebounds, Facundo Campazzo scored 14 and Will Barton had 13 for Denver. The Nuggets had their eight-game winning streak snapped.

Denver led 79-65 with 2:17 left in the third quarter but the Celtics took control from that point.

Walker scored seven points, Brown had six to get Boston within a point early in the fourth quarter, and Langford hit two free throws to give the Celtics an 80-79 lead, their first of the game.

The Nuggets missed 10 straight shots and had five turnovers following Campazzo's 3-pointer that put them ahead by 14. The run ended with Monte Morris' jumper with 10-footer with 7:08 remaining.

Tatum then hit a jumper and a long 3-pointer to give Boston a 90-82 lead with 6:20 left.

Jokic got a rebound to get his 14th triple-double of the season and 55th of his career but he turned it over, leading to a dunk by Williams. The Celtics made two more field goals after misses by Jokic to push the lead to 96-82 with 4:41 left.

Porter's three-point play broke another Denver drought and was just the second Nuggets field goal since late in the third quarter.

The Nuggets scored just eight points over the final 14:17 of the game and missed 22 of their final 25 shots.

Denver led by 14 late in the first quarter and by 11 in the final minute of the second after two free throws by Porter. Smart hit a 3-pointer and Tatum a layup with less than a second left in the period to cut the Nuggets' lead to 51-45 at halftime.

-reuters

Celtics re-sign Smart to 4-year, $52 million deal

BOSTON — The Boston Celtics re-signed guard Marcus Smart on Thursday (Friday in Manila), bringing him back for four more years after he found the market for a restricted free agent defensive specialist wasn’t as lucrative as he’d hoped.

A person with knowledge of the agreement told The Associated Press that Smart will be paid $52 million (P2.7B) over the next four years. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the team did not disclose the terms of the contract.

The Celtics scheduled an availability with Smart after announcing the deal, then canceled it an hour later, saying he had flu-like symptoms and was being treated at a hospital with IV fluids.

Smart averaged 10.2 points, 4.8 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game this season. He returned from thumb surgery late in the first round of the playoffs and provided the defensive presence that was instrumental in the Celtics taking the Cleveland Cavaliers to seven games in the Eastern Conference finals.

LeBron James called Smart’s creativity on the court “uncanny” during their matchup and coach Brad Stevens said Smart was “as tough as tough as they come,” making hustle plays on offense being disruptive on defense.

He also has been a locker-room favorite among his teammates for the past four seasons, bringing a needed edge and in-your-face style on the court.

Those intangibles aside, Smart entered the summer in limbo with Boston remaining mostly quiet as free agency began. The Celtics quickly agreed to a two-year, $11 million deal with veteran big man Aron Baynes. The slow movement on Smart left open the possibility they might let him test the market and then decide whether to match any offers.

General manager Danny Ainge said immediately after the season that fears of a luxury tax bill wouldn’t factor into the team’s decision of whether to bring back players. But as the roster currently stands, Boston will be on the hook to be taxed next season.

Finances will continue to be an issue with Gordon Hayward signed to a four-year, $128 million deal, Kyrie Irving set to become a free agent after next season and several salary-friendly rookie contracts set to expire over the next few seasons.
Still, for now, the core of the team that won 55 games and was the surprise of the East even with Hayward sidelined last season is intact to try to make another run.

source: philstar.com