Instant Analysis: Boston Celtics cruise by Trail Blazers with confidence

The Boston Celtics beat the Portland Trail Blazers on March 8 with a final score of 115-93.

Here’s what went down.

Jayson Tatum showed up

Jayson Tatum seemingly used his rest days well, as he poured in a cool 30 points on 64.7% shooting, with 60% falling from beyond the arc. The superstar supplemented the scoring with seven rebounds and a +21 plus/minus.

Tatum has had some terrible games since the All-Star Break, averaging just under 29% before tonight. His play tends to correlate with the Boston Celtics struggling. In the March 3 collapse against the Nets, for example, Tatum shot 0/7 from outside.

It was a great sight for Celtics fans to see him thrive.

Damian Lillard was contained by the Boston Celtics

In my keys to the game posted before tip-off, I said that the Celtics had to hold Damian Lillard to under 40, preferably 30. He came into the game averaging 40.3 PPG.

He finished with 27, and the Celtics got the win.

The Boston Celtics moved the ball more and turned it over less

The Boston Celtics finished with 26 assists and 11 turnovers. The Trail Blazers finished with 18 assists and 16 turnovers.

The ball movement, specifically the drive and kick, was heavily in play, and the C’s attacked the ball consistently on the defensive end. The game was never competitive after halftime.

Al Horford came with some energy

The first five points of the game were scored by Al Horford, and he finished the 1st with ten. This spark from early on is just what the Boston Celtics needed after a string of losing efforts.

The big man finished with 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists. After missing the go-ahead bucket in double overtime against the Knicks, Horford was able to bounce back.

Blake Griffin was selected as the backup big

In what came as a surprise to many, Coach Joe Mazzulla elected to go with Blake Griffin as the primary backup to Al Horford, rather than Luke Kornet or Mike Muscala. He played 18 minutes and had some huge hustle plays for the Boston Celtics, as he has shown at points throughout the season.

He didn’t get in the scoring column, but the former All-Star finished with six boards and three dimes.

What’s next

The Celtics will look to keep the momentum going after two full days off this Saturday on the road against the Hawks.