By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Certainly, more complicated than initially expected, but the Boston Celtics got the job done against the Memphis Grizzlies in FedExForum on NBA Sundays.
Latvian Kristaps Porzingis scored a team-high 26 points and shut down Ziaire Williams with a block at the end of the fourth quarter.
“I checked the clock. I knew it was low on time. It was just the instinct to jump forward and block,” he painted the picture on his approach to the last play of the tight affair.
Porzingis, 28, ended up with six rejections, besides additionally recording eight rebounds, one assist, and one steal. His side improved to a league-high 11-2 W-L tally.
“We just played our game,” he said on fueling the sixth win in a row for the storied franchise, “I tried to take advantage of some of the mismatches. It was just one of those games that kind of happened naturally.”
Established as a starter for the Celtics at the top of his eighth campaign in the league based in North America, the Latvian center is averaging 19.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 0.5 steals per contest.
Santi Aldama nets career-high
Producing a personal best in the NBA behind 28 points, Spanish Santi Aldama was on the wrong end of the result on Sunday. “I’m lucky to have teammates and a coaching staff that trust me,” he reacted.
Aldama, 22, is up to 12.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 0.8 blocks per contest, all projected career-highs.
Up next, the Celtics will wrap up a four-game trip and a back-to-back, visiting the Charlotte Hornets on Monday. The Grizzlies resume action with a meeting opposite the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.
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