A night after the Boston Celtics rallied from a huge deficit to beat the Phoenix Suns, they nearly did so again Friday night. The Utah Jazz however would hold on for a 123-115 victory at Vivint Smart Home Center Arena in Salt Lake City.
After a back and forth first quarter, Utah (6-6) opened up a seven point halftime lead led by Joe Ingles who scored 13 of his teams final 15 first half points. Boston (7-5) fell behind by as many as 20 in the third quarter, and 13 at the end of the third. The Celtics made a 10-2 run and cut the Jazz lead to four on several occasions in the final stanza, before a late three pointer by former Celtic Jae Crowder put the game away.
Boston was without Kyrie Irving, who was away from the team on a sympathy leave and was attending a memorial service for his grandfather. The Celtics put six players in double figures led by Terry Rozier with 22. Jayson Tatum had 21, Marcus Morris 16, while Gordon Hayward, Marcus Smart, and Al Horford had 13 a piece. Ingles led Utah with 27 points. Donovan Mitchell had 21, Crowder finished with 20. Rudy Gobert and Ricky Rubio had 17 a piece, and Derrick Favors added 14. The Jazz shot a sizzling 56 percent from the floor.
Boston returns to action on Sunday as they visit Portland to battle the Trailblazers at 9 pm.
