The BOSTON Celtics continue their streak of nine straight wins for the team with the best record in the NBA.
Jayson Tatum scored 26 points, Sam Hauser and Al Horford added 23 points, and the Celtics played well enough late in the game to beat the Chicago Bulls 124-113.
“We’re just hungry to win. It’s not in our character to just, like, deliver for the rest of the season,” Hauser quoted the NBA as saying.
Hauser hit 7 of 8 3-pointers, while Horford made 5 of Boston’s 21 shots from beyond the arc.
Derrick White scored 17 points. Payton Pritchard added 15 points and eight assists, and Luke Kornet grabbed 13 rebounds.
DeMar DeRozan led Chicago with 26 points. Alex Caruso, Nikola Vucevic and Ayo Dosunmu each scored 14 points as the Bulls suffered their second straight loss.
Also read: Boston Celtics Beat Detroit Pistons 129-102 in Eight Consecutive Wins
In other games, Reggie Jackson scored 23 points, Aaron Gordon had 22 points and 12 rebounds as the Denver Nuggets beat the Portland Trail Blazers 114-111. The Nuggets won without their star duo, Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.
The defending champions have won eight of their last nine games and are 14-2 since the All-Star break.
“Anytime you can win a game without Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, especially on the road, you’re always going to take it,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.
“I’m proud of our team for fighting through this. Give them credit, they came out of halftime with enthusiasm and got us up,” he added.
Rookie Duop Reath led the Trail Blazers with 24 points. Scoot Henderson, the third pick in last year’s draft, finished with 22 points and six assists as the Blazers suffered their sixth straight loss. (NBA/Ndf/Z-7)
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