Tatum scored 45 points, and the first place in the West fell with a bang, and Edwards was 29+6
On January 11, Beijing time, the NBA regular season ushered in a key matchup, a direct dialogue between the top of the East and West: the Celtics sat at home to face the Timberwolves. Previously, the Celtics had a record of 28 wins and 8 losses, and they sat in the first place in the East for two months, especially the home record of 17-0 and remained undefeated! The starting five just contributed 100 points per game, in addition to 120.9 offensive efficiency + 110.4 defensive efficiency, both of which are second in the league, and the average of 16.1 three-pointers + 47.6 rebounds per game is the first in the league. Overall, they are a very balanced team, according to American media statistics, all players in the East this season compete in the rankings, among the top seven, the Celtics have 6, Embiid ranks third, White has a net win of 15.7 points and ranks first, Boshen has a net win of 13.1 points and ranks second, and Double Tanhua, Pritchard, and Holiday are also on the list.
The Timberwolves have a record of 26 wins and 10 losses since the beginning of the season, and they have been sitting in the first position in the West for more than a month, and the key to the team's dominance in the West this season is defense, with a defensive efficiency of 108.2 ranking first in the league, and the coverage and deterrence of the twin towers, and the defensive attributes of the forward McDaniels, Lee Kyle, Reed and others are also very strong. The fly in the ointment is that the team's offense is at the bottom of the league, with Edwards averaging 26.2 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game as the absolute core, and Towns averaging 22 points and 9 rebounds per game, lacking offensive firepower. Before the game, the Timberwolves made changes to the lineup, Gobert suffered hip soreness, Conley took a rest load management, and the Timberwolves intended to play this game?
Celtics starters: Holiday + White + Jaylen Brown + Tatum + Horford; Timberwolves starters: Alexander Walker + Edwards + McDaniels + Lee Kyle + Towns. At the beginning of the game, Tatum and Brown hit three-pointers one after another, Lee Kyle broke through to challenge Horford, and scored against the throw, Tatum made a kill, Brown continued to score three points, and the Celtics quickly widened the difference. In the middle of the period, the Timberwolves made a strong effort inside, Towns and Reed continued to attack and succeed, Cornet dunked to stop the bleeding, and McLaughlin responded with three points. In the second half, Jaylen Brown blossomed inside and out, combined with Pritchard's three-pointer, and opened a 10-point difference! But Reed counterattacked with consecutive dunks, coupled with Lee Kyle's singles, the Timberwolves responded with a wave of small climaxes, and after the first quarter, the Celtics led the Timberwolves 32-27.
Coming back in the second quarter, Reed continued to score three points, Towns made a clever rebound, Holiday began to break through consecutive points, and Tatum's three-pointer made the Celtics widen the gap again to stop the Timberwolves. After the pause, Lee Kyle made a basket + Edwards broke through the dunk in a row, the Celtics called a timeout to no avail, and Edwards continued to singles to catch up with the score. In the second half, White and Tatum scored free throws to break the deadlock, Holiday hit a three-pointer, Towns made a kill, and Edwards responded with a single Brown + counterattack and a step-by-step dunk. At halftime, the Timberwolves trailed the Celtics 53-54, with Brown scoring 17 points, Tatum 12 points, Edwards 14 points, Towns 10 points and 6 rebounds, and Lee Kyle 8 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists.
At the beginning of the second half, Horford and Brown hit three-pointers, Towns kept hitting singles, and Daniels and Edwards rained three-pointers, and the Timberwolves successfully overtook them. In the middle of the period, Tatum continued to score three points, Towns trained Tatum, Brown was very efficient, made three-point fouls, and made a layup, and the Timberwolves' Reed and Milton blossomed inside and out, leading the team to bite the score, and the two teams fell into a tug-of-war. In the second half, Towns and Reed rained three-pointers, Edwards continued to make three-pointers, and after the Timberwolves' defensive intensity increased, the Celtics basically relied on Tatum and Holiday to maintain the situation alone, and Edwards continued to make kills at the end of the quarter, and after the third quarter, the Timberwolves led the Celtics 85-79.
In the fourth quarter, the two teams faced off for three points at the beginning. In the middle of the period, Li Kaier scored consecutive singles, Tatum burst inside and outside, and Edwards felt hot on the outside. Lee Kyle missed the shot, and the Timberwolves opened up a nine-point difference. In the decisive moment, Horford and Walker exchanged three-pointers, and Tatum scored a layup and hit a three-pointer against Towns. In the last 1 minute, Tatum made one of two free throws, but White grabbed a key rebound, and Holiday overtook with three points! Edwards tied the score with a free throw, Tatum hit the iron at the last time, and tied it at 111 in overtime! After that, Tatum broke through to the layup + counterattacked the three-pointer to stop the Timberwolves. After that, the Timberwolves were unable to chase points, and finally the Celtics defeated the Timberwolves 127-120 and won 18 consecutive home games!
Celtics statistics, Tatum 45 points and 4 rebounds, Jaylen Brown 35 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists, Holiday 12 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, White 9 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists, Horford 9 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. Timberwolves statistics, Towns 25 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists, Edwards 29 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 5 turnovers, Reed 19 points and 10 rebounds, Lee Kyle 17 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists, Walker 15 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists.