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Providence Needs a “W” or Two

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NEW YORK  – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Providence is two wins from assuring itself of an NCAA Tournament bid.

But in case they don’t win the Big East Conference tournament and the automatic NCAA entry that comes with it, the seventh-seeded Friars (21-12) are making a strong case for the selection committee. And they’ll get another chance at enhancing an already solid resume Friday night when they play third-seeded Marquette (24-8) — the nation’s 10th-ranked team — in the conference semifinals.

The winner will meet either top-seeded and No. 2-ranked UConn or streaking St. John’s, the fifth seed, in Saturday’s championship game.

Providence won the tournament title in 1994 and 2014, and Marquette is the defending champion.

Two years ago, Providence was the top seed and took a 27-point loss to Creighton in the semis. This time, the Friars are in the semifinals after earning a 78-73 victory over Creighton in Thursday’s quarterfinals that marked their sixth Quad 1 victory.

“This time of the season some teams are playing for their lives,” Providence coach Kim English said after the win over Creighton. “(We had) ups and downs all season, adversity, less-than-ideal mindset and moments, bad shots, bad plays, bad turnovers, bad responses, (but) we got 40 minutes to be our most locked-in selves. That was one of our best efforts of the season.”

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Devin Carter has fueled Providence’s two tournament wins after claiming Big East Player of the Year honors. He followed a 19-point showing in Wednesday’s win over Georgetown by collecting 22 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals while playing the entire 40 minutes against Creighton.

“I think it was a must-win game,” said Carter, who played at least 40 minutes for the fifth time this season and averages 35.4 minutes per game. “We want to keep our tournament dreams alive, and we also want to get a Big East championship.”

Providence is in the semifinals after ending the regular season with three losses in four games, including a 91-69 setback at then-No. 5 Marquette on Feb. 28.

On Thursday, Marquette advanced to the semifinals via an overtime win for the second straight season. Last year the Golden Eagles moved on by beating St. John’s in the quarterfinals and later defeated Xavier to win the conference title, and this time they outlasted Villanova 71-65.

Marquette nearly won it in regulation, but officials ruled Kam Jones’ basket did not beat the buzzer. Jones scored 18 points and David Joplin added six of his 14 in overtime to help the Golden Eagles withstand the absence of All-Big East guard Tyler Kolek due to an oblique injury.

Kolek is expected to remain out Friday, though he has been practicing. On Friday, the Golden Eagles hope to get clutch performances again from Jones and Joplin while getting help from Oso Ighodaro, whose lone basket occurred late in overtime.

“Obviously we’d love to win the Big East tournament,” Marquette coach Shaka Smart said. “We’d love to win tomorrow night. I think what our guys are showing these last couple of games and even the two games we lost without Tyler is that we can compete with anyone, even while he’s recovering.”

– Field Level Media

Celtics, Brown Continue to Dominate

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Jaylen Brown made five 3-pointers and scored a game-high 37 points to help the Boston Celtics extend their winning streak to four games with a 127-112 decision against the visiting Phoenix Suns.

Jayson Tatum added 26 for Boston, which shot 25 of 50 from behind the 3-point arc. Al Horford tossed in six 3-pointers and finished with a season-high 24 points. The Celtics (52-14) also received 10 assists and nine points from Jrue Holiday.

Boston, which improved to 30-3 at home, has won 15 of its past 17 games. Boston is the first team in the NBA to mathematically qualify for the playoffs as they raised their regular season record to 52-14.

Devin Booker scored a team-high 23 points for the Suns. He was in his second game back from an ankle injury that kept him out of four games, including Phoenix’s 117-107 home loss to Boston on Saturday.

Phoenix (38-28) received 22 points from Bradley Beal plus 20 from both Kevin Durant and Grayson Allen. Jusuf Nurkic collected 20 rebounds, the top single-game total for a Celtics opponent this season.

The Suns lost despite having a 51-33 advantage in rebounds, as they were outscored 75-33 from 3-point range.

Boston center Kristaps Porzingis missed his fourth straight game with a right hamstring strain. Before the game, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said Porzingis was improving but there was no timetable for his return.

Phoenix bolted to a 26-18 lead, but Boston closed the first quarter hot and led 35-32 after 12 minutes.

Bol Bol capped a 19-9 run with a 3-pointer that put the Suns in front 51-50 with 4:58 to play in the second quarter. Boston made 12 of its 24 3-point attempts in the first half, however, and led 65-60 at halftime.

A 9-0 run gave the Celtics a 77-65 lead with 8:50 to play in the third, the first time either team led by double digits. Boston stretched its advantage to 95-75 on a Horford 3-pointer with 2:45 left in the third. The Celtics had a 102-85 edge heading into the fourth.

–Field Level Media

DeBrusk Beats Habs in OT

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MONTREAL – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Jake DeBrusk scored the game-winning goal 25 seconds into overtime as the Boston Bruins beat the host Canadiens 2-1 on Thursday night.

DeBrusk drove to the net and slipped home a backhand shot after taking a pass from Boston captain Brad Marchand on a two-on-one rush.

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Danton Heinen scored his fourth goal against Montreal this season, helping Boston go 3-0-1 against the Canadiens.

Linus Ullmark made 18 saves as the Bruins logged their third victory in four games.

Boston had a 24-19 advantage in shots on goal, scoring on the only shot of overtime.

Nick Suzuki scored Montreal’s lone goal, and Sam Montembeault stopped 22 shots.

The Canadiens have lost three of four (1-2-1).

Boston (24) and Montreal (21) have played the first and third-most overtime games, respectively, in the NHL this season.

The Bruins went 0-for-4 on the power play. The Canadiens were 0-for-3.

The Bruins scored first 4:49 into the first period when Heinen slotted home his own rebound while falling to the ice low in the left circle. Montembeault made saves on David Pastrnak’s drive from the opposite side and then initially on Heinen before the goal.

Three Boston hit the post in the first period to keep the Bruins from furthering their lead, including a Charlie Coyle backhander at the 8:03 mark early on the opening power play.

Suzuki’s goal at 14:37 made it a 1-1 game entering the first intermission. Boston defenseman Brandon Carlo turned the puck over to Suzuki in the left circle, where an initial shot was blocked to Juraj Slafkovsky and passed back through traffic for an open shot.

The teams combined for just 11 shots in a scoreless second period, with Montembeault nearly getting a piece of Pastrnak’s shot on the breakaway that hit the outside of the post.

Montreal killed Suzuki’s four-minute penalty for a high stick to the face of Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy in the last eight minutes of regulation, despite Boston rookie Justin Brazeau’s hard work at the net front looking for a go-ahead goal.

–Field Level Media

BIG EAST Names Providence’s Devin Carter as Conference Player of Year

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NEW YORK – (Staff Report from Official News Release) – Providence guard Devin Carter was named BIG EAST Player of the Year. Connecticut coach Dan Hurley wasnBIG EAST Coach of the Year and Hurley’s freshman guard standout Stephon Castle was been selected unanimously BIG EAST Freshman of the Year.

The conference’s head coaches make the selections and are not permitted to vote for their own players. The awards are presented at Madison Square Garden prior to the start of the 2024 BIG EAST Tournament Presented by JEEP. It is the 42nd consecutive year the BIG EAST is playing its postseason tournament at the World’s Most Famous Arena.

Carter, a 6-3 junior guard, is the BIG EAST scoring champion with a 21.4 average in league games. Overall, he ranks second in scoring at 19.4, third in rebounding at 8.6, fourth in 3-point shooting, making 38.5 percent and fourth in steals at 1.9. Carter, whose hometown is Miami, Fla., has posted 12 double-doubles this season, which ranks third in the league. In addition to his outstanding offensive production, he is also considered one of the BIG EAST’s top defensive players. Carter has helped lead the Friars to a 19-12 overall record and a 10-10 league mark. He is only the second Providence player to earn BIG EAST Player of the Year. Kris Dunn won in 2015-16 and shared the award in 2014-15 with Villanova’s Ryan Arcidiacono.

Hurley, in his sixth season at UConn, has guided the Huskies to an overall record of 28-3 and an 18-2 BIG EAST mark, which is the highest conference victory total in league history. Included in the 18 victories was a 14-game BIG EAST winning streak.  The Huskies are outright regular season BIG EAST champions for the first time since 1999. Hurley’s UConn career record is 132-58 (.695). In BIG EAST regular season play, he is 55-21 (.724). This week, the Huskies are ranked second in both national polls. Hurley’s Huskies are 27-1 against non-conference opponents over the last two seasons with all 27 wins coming by double digits. During that stretch, they set the D-I record with 24 straight.

Castle’s selection as Freshman of the Year should not be a surprise since he was the Preseason Freshman of the Year as chosen by the coaches and earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Week honors a record 11 times during the season, including the last seven weeks. Unlike most college freshmen, Castle also excels defensively and is customarily given difficult defensive assignments. He leads all league freshman with an 11.2 scoring average, but also makes all-around contributions, with averages of 4.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists. The last UConn player to be named BIG EAST Freshman of the Year was Rudy Gay in 2004-05. Gay shared the honor with Jeff Green of Georgetown.

BIG EAST Player of the Year
Devin Carter, Providence

BIG EAST Coach of the Year
Dan Hurley, Connecticut

BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Stephon Castle, Connecticut

Celtics Beat Jazz in Get-Away Game

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SALT LAKE CITY – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Jayson Tatum tossed in a game-high 38 points and Derrick White made 7 of 11 3-point attempts and scored 24 points as the Boston Celtics wrapped up a five-game road trip by beating the Utah Jazz 123-107 on Tuesday night.

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It was the third straight victory for Boston, which lost the first two games of the trip.

Jrue Holiday added 16 points, eight assists and five rebounds for the Celtics, who made 20 of 49 3-pointers (40.8 percent).

Boston led by seven entering the final quarter and seized control by scoring the first 15 points of the fourth. Utah’s first points of the period came on a Jordan Clarkson layup that made it 113-93 with 5:34 to play.

Keyonte George scored 26 points to lead the Jazz. Utah received 21 points from Clarkson and 20 points, seven rebounds and five assists from Collin Sexton.

The Celtics were missing Jaylen Brown (sacroiliac strain), Al Horford (toe sprain) and Kristaps Porzingis (hamstring strain).

Utah played without Lauri Markkanen, who missed his fourth consecutive game with a right quad contusion.

Boston made nine 3-pointers in the opening quarter and led 44-33 after 12 minutes. The Celtics later had a 52-35 lead, but Utah went on a 15-2 run and trailed 54-50 with 6:07 left in the first half. An 8-0 spurt helped Boston build a 16-point lead late in the second quarter, and the Celtics owned a 72-57 advantage at halftime.

The Celtics made 14 of 25 3-pointers in the first half. White and Sam Hauser each had four treys by halftime. It was the 15th time Boston has scored at least 70 points in the first half of a game this season.

Utah was within two points when a Clarkson basket cut Boston’s lead to 93-91 with 36.2 seconds remaining in the third quarter, but the Celtics scored the final five points of the frame and had a 98-91 edge entering the fourth.

–Field Level Media

Celtics Look to Extend Road Streak

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SALT LAKE CITY – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Celtics will be looking to extend their road winning streak to three games when they face the slumping Utah Jazz on Tuesday night.

After beating Phoenix 117-107 on Saturday, the Celtics earned a 121-99 victory at Portland on Monday. Jaylen Brown led Boston with 27 points and Jayson Tatum added 26. Sam Hauser came off the bench to make 6 of 10 3-pointers and finished with a season-high 22 points.

“We just played hard, made the right reads on offense, knew our personnel on defense and made a lot of shots,” Hauser said. “I had a rough first half but turned it around in the second half. Once you see a couple (shots) go, the rim gets bigger and you get more confidence.”

Jrue Holiday (knee) and Kristaps Porzingis (hamstring) sat out Boston’s win over Portland. Al Horford scored 11 points against the Trail Blazers but may not be available against Utah since he typically does not play on back-to-back nights.

Tuesday’s contest will be the final game of Boston’s five-game road trip. The Celtics opened the trip with losses to Cleveland (105-104) last Tuesday and Denver (115-109) on Thursday.

Utah has lost two in a row, five of its last six and 10 of its last 12. The Jazz trailed by 39 points in the first half of Saturday’s 142-121 loss at Denver. Utah outscored the Nuggets 44-24 in the third quarter to pull within 14 but failed to get any closer. Denver made 19 of its 32 3-point attempts in the game.

“Obviously when you’re down 39 points at one point it’s a long road back to win the game, but I do think the second half is something we can build on,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said.

Utah’s Lauri Markkanen has missed the last three games with a right quadriceps contusion. Markkanen is averaging 23.1 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 51 games this season.

Utah’s Walker Kessler returned to the lineup against Denver after missing four games with a right foot sprain. Rookie Keyonte George scored 29 points against the Nuggets, and fellow rookie Brice Sensabaugh made 7 of 11 field-goal attempts for 16 points.

“I think both of those guys (George and Sensabaugh) … the best thing is they show a tremendous amount of confidence in themselves,” Hardy said. “They have a tremendous amount of confidence in each other — the way they speak to each other during the game and encourage each other. The way they feed off each other I think is a positive. They both know there’s a lot of work to be done, though. To get to the level they want to get to, to be a team that’s competing for a championship, those guys are really going to have to up their level.”

The matchup will be the second game between the Celtics and Jazz this season. Utah shot 36.2 percent from the field (34 of 94) and 17.6 percent from behind the 3-point line in a 126-97 loss at Boston on Jan. 5. The Celtics never trailed and led by as many as 36 points in the first half.

Tatum led Boston with 30 points in the win. Utah, which turned the ball over 18 times in the game, received 17 points, five rebounds and five assists from Markkanen.

–Field Level Media

Celtics Drill Blazers, Brown 27 Points

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PORTLAND – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Jaylen Brown recorded 27 points, six rebounds and five assists and the Boston Celtics became the first NBA team to reach the 50-win mark this season with a 121-99 victory over the host Portland Trail Blazers.

Jayson Tatum added 26 points and eight assists and Sam Hauser scored a season-best 22 points off the bench for Boston.

Payton Pritchard added 11 points, eight rebounds and eight assists, Al Horford had 11 points and three blocked shots and Derrick White contributed 11 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots for the Celtics.

Deandre Ayton had 22 points and 15 rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who lost for the 10th time in their past 11 home games.

Anfernee Simons scored 17 points, Jerami Grant added 14 and Scoot Henderson had 13 points, eight assists and six rebounds for Portland.

Boston won for the 13th time in its past 15 games despite playing without Kristaps Porzingis (hamstring) and Jrue Holiday (knee).

The Celtics shot 49 percent from the field, including 15 of 40 (37.5 percent) from 3-point range.

Portland connected on 44.8 percent of its shots and was 10 of 28 (35.7 percent) from behind the arc.

Boston led 79-60 with 7:44 left in the third quarter after a 7-0 run.

The Trail Blazers answered with a 15-5 charge, and Grant’s three-point play pulled Portland within 84-75 with 1:36 remaining in the third. The Celtics scored the final four points of the stanza for a 13-point lead.

Tatum and Hauser connected on back-to-back treys to boost Boston’s advantage to 101-83 with 8:40 left in the contest.

Hauser later buried a trey to push the lead to 115-95 with two minutes remaining as the Celtics closed out their seventh win in the past nine meetings with the Trail Blazers.

Brown scored 17 first-half points to help the Celtics hold a 66-52 lead at the break. Ayton scored 14 in the half for Portland.

Boston made six treys in the first quarter en route to a 37-28 lead. A dunk by Luke Kornet made it 50-33 with 7:47 left in the half.

Simons hit two 3-pointers during an 11-0 surge that allowed the Trail Blazers to move within 56-50 with 3:37 to play. The Celtics answered with a 10-2 run to make it a 14-point halftime margin.

–Field Level Media

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | March 10

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The Baseball Bats will be Cracking as will the Beer cans at Fenway Johnnies/Boston

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – That’s a Boston dateline, not Fort Myers (Florida) or Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic) where all good Boston baseball writers should be for a pair of games this weekend. The two Red Sox games against Tampa Bay will be played at Estadio Quisqueya Juan Marichal for an official Major League Baseball event, tabbed as The Dominican Republic Series, as part of MLB’s “World Tour.”

The great Marichal pitched for the San Francisco Giants from 1960 through 1973 – then the Red Sox and LA Dodgers in his final two MLB seasons. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, garnering 83.7% of the votes. Honestly, there’s no indication as to what planet the other 16.3% of the voters were living back in ‘83 when the vote was taken. It might’ve been George Lucas’ Alderaan for God’s sake when you consider that a gorgeous stadium in the DR was named after the speed-baller but 16.3% of the BBWAA writers missed him on the vote?

Toss in Red Sox greats Pedro Martinez and David “Big Papi” Ortiz and you have an Old Timer’s Game waiting to happen. But, more immediately, you can look for Boston’s All-Star 3B Rafael Devers or starting pitcher Brayan Bello with Tampa’s Yandy Diaz, Jose Siri, and Randy Arozarena and you’ll be preparing for the 2024 MLB All-Star Game or close to it.

Aside from those players, the Dominican Republic is home to a variety of Major League Baseball education and training programs at various league-run academies. The idea behind this year’s inaugural DR Series is to honor the players who’ve competed at those academies and have made it all the way to the Big Leagues.

Remember, Major League Baseball will open its 2024 season when the LA Dodgers and San Diego Padres travel to Seoul, Korea for a pair of games, March 20 and 21. Earlier, March 17 and 18, the two MLB teams will play exhibitions vs local Korean teams. The rest of MLB will celebrate Opening Day on March 28. Both LA and SD will have home games to continue their regular season.

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Last week’s theme was dedicated to the anticipation of March Madness. This week, we’ll tease March Madness some more as the various college conference tournaments have begun and the Big Boys will tip-off their respective tournaments this week. … Digital Sports Desk will be on-site at Madison Square Garden for the annual BIG EAST Tournament where UConn will be the heavy favorites.

The A-10 will be a subway ride away from Madison Square Garden/Penn Station with their tournament March 12-16th at Barclays in Brooklyn. … Meanwhile the blue bloods of North Carolina and Duke will take on their ACC rivals March 12-16 at the Capital One Arena in Washington DC.

This week, the following Division I tournaments tipped-off and are on-going as this is written:

  • Ohio Valley
  • Big South
  • Missouri Valley Conference
  • Atlantic Sun
  • Sun Belt
  • Southern Conference
  • Horizon League
  • Northeast Conference
  • Coastal Athletic Assn. (CAA)
  • West Coast Conference
  • Summit League
  • Southland
  • Big Sky
  • Patriot League
  • America East
  • Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
  • Southwestern Conference

Then, the “weekend” conferences, including the IVY

  • Big 12
  • Mountain West
  • Big East
  • Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
  • Mid-American
  • Conference USA
  • Atlantic Coast Conference
  • Big West
  • Pac-12 (what’s left of it)
  • Western Athletic Conference
  • IVY League
  • Atlantic 10
  • Southeastern Conference
  • American Athletic Conference
  • Big 10

TID-BITS: While College Basketball is front and center this week, the PGA Tour will stage its “Fifth Major” with The PLAYERS Championship taking place at TPC Sawgrass (The PLAYERS Stadium Course) in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Much like The BIG EAST in New York – the very best college basketball tournament in the USA – there is no better pro golf event in the world, and that includes The Masters, The Open, Pebble Beach and the other Majors.

It is at The PLAYERS when the split between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf becomes very apparent – call it annoying. When the PLAYERS rolls around, you want to see the very best – Jon Rahm, Dustin Johnson, Tyrrell Hatton, Bubba Watson, Joaquin Niemann, Louis Oosthuizen, Patrick Reed and even Phil “All Bets Off, No More Bets” Mickelson compete for one of golf’s biggest purses. This year, Tiger Woods will not be healthy enough to compete.

Meanwhile, the LIV golfers went from Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) to Hong Kong and will be watching The PLAYERS from their homes before they pick up the sticks in Miami on April 5-7.

Niemann won two of the first three LIV events with the final round in HK with the shotgun start at 11:05 Saturday night (tonight for those who read the Bulldog edition).

TOO MUCH: Center Rudy Gobert of the Minnesota Timberwolves thinks he’s a wise guy. Not a real Wise Guy, but a wise guy. Gobert earned his sixth personal foul in a March 8th 113-104 overtime loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. With 27.1 seconds remaining in the 4th quarter, Gobert was whistled for a loose ball foul, then hit with a technical. The reason? After the foul and his impending DQ, Gobert gestured towards NBA official Scott Foster with Gobert’s fingers rubbing together, as though he was caressing money – implying Foster was on the take.

The “T” allowed Cavaliers guard Darius Garland to drain a free throw to tie the game at 97-all, a costly foul/point as the 4th Q ended with the score tied at 97.

“A technical foul with 27 seconds in the game, to be honest, is unacceptable,” said acting head coach Micah Nori said after he filled in for head coach Chris Finch who was ill. “That’s who Rudy is, but you’ve got to be smart. He made a visual that was automatic. He was obviously frustrated — both teams were — but we have to be smarter.”

Gobert admitted he was wrong in making the gesture.

“My reaction, which I think was the truth, but it wasn’t the time to react that way,” he said. “It cost my team the game. It was an immature reaction. It’s not just one call. Everyone makes mistakes, but when it’s over and over and over again, of course it’s frustrating.”

The gesture might earn a cool $50,000 fine but the quotes should be call for a one game suspension without pay.

Enough is enough.

Minnesota is at the LA Lakers today (Sunday, March 10), so if there’s a suspension, it’ll come down before the game.

Celtics Handle Suns; Tatum 29 Points

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PHOENIX – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Jayson Tatum had 29 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, and his teammate Jaylen Brown finished with 27 points to help the visiting Celtics avoid their first three-game losing streak of the season by beating the Phoenix Suns 117-107 on Saturday night.

Tatum scored 22 points in the second half, 13 of them in the fourth quarter.

Phoenix received a season-high 45 points to go with 10 rebounds and six assists from Kevin Durant, who was 18 of 26 from the field. It was Durant’s fifth game with at least 40 points this season.

The Celtics were up by nine after three quarters and stretched the lead to 15 on a 3-pointer by Tatum with 9:19 to play. Phoenix trailed 107-102 following a three-point play by Durant with 3:55 left, but the Suns failed to get any closer.

Bradley Beal added 25 points for the Suns, who were seeking their third straight victory. Jusuf Nurkic finished with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Boston’s Al Horford had nine points and 12 rebounds, and Luke Kornet came off the bench to contribute 14 points and six rebounds.

Kristaps Porzingis, Boston’s starting center, was a late addition to the injury report and didn’t play because of hamstring tightness. Boston coach Joe Mazzulla termed Porzingis day-to-day.

Devin Booker (ankle) missed his fourth straight game for the Suns.

Boston ended the first quarter with a 9-2 run and led 31-26. The Celtics extended their lead to 15 points late in the second quarter and had a 62-50 advantage at halftime. Durant (20) and Brown (18) were the leading scorers in the half.

Phoenix trimmed Boston’s lead to 77-74 when Durant capped a 9-0 run by making a 3-pointer with 3:56 remaining in the third. The Celtics went on a 10-4 spurt after that, however, and led 87-78 entering the final quarter.

The teams will meet again Thursday in Boston.

–Field Level Media

Celtics to Get Back on Track vs Suns?

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PHOENIX – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Phoenix Suns will attempt to hand the visiting Boston Celtics their third consecutive loss when the teams meet Saturday night.

Boston’s 11-game winning streak came to an end when the Celtics squandered a 22-point fourth-quarter lead in a 105-104 loss at Cleveland on Tuesday. After that, the Celtics suffered a 115-109 loss at Denver on Thursday.

Jaylen Brown had 41 points and 14 rebounds against Denver, but was 7 of 14 from the free-throw line. Kristaps Porzingis added 24 points and 12 rebounds for Boston, but Jayson Tatum had a rare off night and finished with 15 points.

“It stings,” Porzingis said. “It stings real bad, but I like that there’s a big margin that we can improve from this game. It’s not always going to go your way of course. You’re not always going to have perfect games, but what I like is there’s a margin for us to get better, to play better.”

Tatum was 5 of 13 from the field in 39 minutes.

“We talk all the time about respecting each other’s space and understanding the flow of the game,” Tatum said. “It’s not for me to hijack the game because it’s a national TV game and make it about me. Other guys had it going.”

Tatum (ankle) is listed as probable for Saturday’s game. Brown (sacroiliac) is questionable.

The Suns are hoping to have guard Devin Booker in the lineup Saturday. Booker has missed three games since he sprained his right ankle during a 118-109 loss to Houston on March 2 but was listed as questionable on Friday’s injury report. Booker is averaging 27.5 points, 6.8 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game this season.

Before his team’s 120-113 victory over Toronto on Thursday, Phoenix coach Frank Vogel said Booker is making progress and is day to day.

“He definitely wants to be back as soon as possible,” Vogel said. “We understand the big picture, and we’re going to bring him back when he’s ready.”

Kevin Durant tossed in 35 points during Thursday’s win against Toronto. Grayson Allen set a franchise record by making seven 3-pointers in the first quarter and finished with 26 points (eight 3-pointers), all in the first half. He also made eight 3-pointers during Tuesday’s 117-107 overtime victory at Denver.

The Suns acquired Allen in a trade shortly before preseason training camp. After Thursday’s win, he was leading the NBA in 3-point percentage (47.5 percent).

“He knows his role in our system and he’s a great shooter,” Vogel said. “Everybody knew he was a good player when he was coming in, but he’s a great player. He’s playing phenomenally for us.”

Saturday’s contest will be the first of two meetings between Boston and Phoenix during the regular season. The teams will also play Thursday in Boston.

“They have had an incredible year thus far,” Durant said. “Best starting five in the league by far.

“They have a big lineup with versatile guys up and down the lineup. They’ve been around each other for a while, so they understand one another. Adding Jrue (Holiday) was huge. Adding Kristaps was huge. We have our work cut out for us. I’m looking forward to the challenge.”

“I like where we are right now,” Durant said. “I think we can keep growing. That’s the best thing about it — we’ve still got room to grow as a team. We’re getting more and more comfortable as the day goes on.”

–Field Level Media