BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Ja Morant had 32 points, nine rebounds and nine assists to help the visiting Memphis Grizzlies defeat the Celtics 127-121 Saturday night and earn their first win at the TD Garden since 2013.
The victory ended Boston’s six-game winning streak against Memphis. The Grizzlies had lost 16 of their last 17 games against the Celtics, including the last 10 in Boston.
Boston led 103-99, but a 10-0 run handed Memphis a six-point lead with 7:19 to play. The Grizzlies maintained the lead after that.
Jaren Jackson Jr. added 27 points, nine rebounds and three steals for the Grizzlies, who went 15 of 33 on 3-point attempts. Jackson scored 14 points in the fourth quarter.
Jayson Tatum had 17 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists for the Celtics, who shot 18 of 60 from long range. Boston received 23 points from Jrue Holiday and 22 from both Payton Pritchard and Jaylen Brown.
Boston’s Sam Hauser left the game in the first half with right adductor tightness and did not return.
Marcus Smart, who spent his first nine NBA seasons with the Celtics before he was traded to Memphis in a three-team deal that brought Kristaps Porzingis to Boston, was 1 of 11 from the field and scored three points. He was given a standing ovation by the Boston crowd when he entered the game.
The loss ended Boston’s three-game winning streak and its seven-game home winning streak.
A 10-0 run gave Memphis an early 18-8 lead, and the Grizzlies led 31-27 going into the second quarter.
Memphis took a 12-point lead following a Morant basket with 29.8 seconds remaining in the first half and led 66-54 at halftime. The Celtics shot 36 percent from the field in the first two quarters and made only 9 of 31 from long range.
Pritchard’s 3-pointer capped a 13-3 run that sliced the Memphis lead to 88-86 with 1:37 left in the third quarter, but Boston trailed 94-89 entering the fourth.
–Field Level Media