Inside The Celtics

Kristaps Porzingis on Celtics Besting Raptors in Slugfest: 'I Loved Our Character'

Kristaps Porzingis stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, three blocks, and a steal in Friday's Celtics' win vs. the Raptors.

Bobby Krivitsky

Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports
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Friday night in Toronto, the Boston Celtics improved to 10-2 to start the 2023-24 season, earning a 108-105 win in a slugfest with the Raptors.

After outscoring the hosts 39-17 in a dominant second quarter, the visitors let their guard down when they came out after halftime.

A 16-6 run quickly got Toronto back in the game and brought the crowd at Scotiabank Arena to life. The Raptors made 65 percent of their shots in the third frame, entering the final 12 minutes only down by three.

The fourth quarter was a low-scoring slugfest, with both teams only putting 24 points on the board. But Boston controlled the contest in the final two minutes.

Kristaps Porzingis punished switches for consecutive buckets at the basket. With 27.1 seconds left and the score tied at 103, Jrue Holiday opted against using a screen from the seven-foot-three center, instead spinning toward the baseline before taking Dennis Schroder into the low post.

That drew Gary Trent Jr. toward him. The next closest defender, Pascal Siakam, zoning two, went with Jaylen Brown as the two-time All-Star cut into the paint, leaving Derrick White open for a corner three that proved the game-winning basket.

The victory improves the Celtics to 2-0 in the NBA's inaugural in-season tournament, meaning they control their destiny in group play, as they're the only team in Group C without a loss.

After the win, Porzingis told Abby Chin of NBC Sports Boston, "I think the first quarter and the beginning of (the) second half, we didn't start off the way we would like to.

"And what I liked about today's game is we fought back, like, we fought, those moments, especially when the crowd got into it in the second half. And we stayed with it, we made some big shots also, and at the end, we won the game, and I loved our character in today's game."

The former All-Star later stated, "When we matched the energy, the game started going in our favor."

He also conveyed, "It wasn't our best game. Nobody was hot and going. But I saw some big plays, energy plays from JB, D. White, Jrue was excellent energy-wise, and that's it, and they picked us up, and we made it happen."

Further Reading

Here's What Stood Out as Celtics Weather the Storm to Prevail vs. Raptors

Jaylen Brown Blasts In-Season Tournament Court After Injury in Celtics’ Win vs. Raptors

Joe Mazzulla Says Boston Celtics Weren't 'Best Version' of Themselves vs. Toronto Raptors

Celtics Discuss Significance of Rivalry Win vs. 76ers for No. 1 Seed in East

Joe Mazzulla Discusses Keys to Celtics Second-Half Turnaround in Win Over 76ers

Here's What Stood Out as Celtics Beat 76ers in Their Best Win of Young Season

Joe Mazzulla Believes Celtics' Second Unit is 'Starting to Develop an Identity'

Kristaps Porzingis Discusses Chemistry with Jaylen Brown: 'I Love Playing with Him'

Joe Mazzulla Shares What's 'Far Exceeded My Expectations' of Kristaps Porzingis

Kristaps Porzingis Gives Glimpse of How He'll Boost Celtics Late-Game Offense

Under Joe Mazzulla, Celtics Rebuilding Brotherhood Between Past and Present

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Bobby Krivitsky
BOBBY KRIVITSKY

Bobby Krivitsky's experiences include covering the NBA as a credentialed reporter for Basketball Insiders. He's also a national sports talk host for SportsMap Radio, a network airing on 96 radio stations throughout the country. Additionally, he was a major-market host, update anchor, and producer for IMG Audio, and he worked for Bleacher Report as an NFL and NBA columnist.

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