Saturday night featured a marquee showdown between two of the most historic franchises in the NBA with a storied rivalry.
The Boston Celtics welcomed the red-hot Los Angeles Lakers to the TD Garden, looking to put an end to their eight-game winning streak.
And they were successful.
The Celtics defeated the Lakers 111-101 behind big games from Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
The five-time All-Star Tatum finished with 40 points, 12 rebounds, and eight assists while the 28-year-old Brown added 31 points.
Along with the win streak being snapped, the Lakers find themselves with an even bigger potential issue.
With the game close midway through the fourth quarter, LeBron James was seen heading to the locker room and was ruled out for the rest of the game minutes later with a groin strain.
After the game, Lakers head coach JJ Redick said he was “concerned” about James’ injury but had no additional updates.
James meanwhile downplayed the severity of the injury while adding that it’s not as serious as the partial left groin tear he suffered on Christmas Day in 2018 that caused him to miss 17 straight games.
“Not much concern,” James said after the game. “Day-to-day, look at it each day to see if it gets better and take the proper measurements and see what we need to do going forward.”
Both the Lakers and Celtics find themselves sitting in the second spot in their respective conferences. And with the two squads looking for a win, it was truly a game of runs.
The Lakers came out of the gates with a 7-0 run to open the game but the reigning champions finally found their footing as the first quarter went by, eventually tying it up 33-33 on a Jayson Tatum three pointer to end the quarter.
Despite Tatum and Jaylen Brown catching fire for Boston, the see-saw affair continued in the second quarter with the Celtics taking a slight 58-54 lead into halftime.
The Celtics came out of the locker rooms on another level, going on a 19-2 run to open the second half.
The Lakers finished the third quarter trailing by 20 points, 87-67, after having more turnovers than field goals in the frame as they struggled to find a rhythm.
However, Los Angeles turned it on in the fourth quarter, going on a 16-2 run to cut the deficit to seven points at 92-85.
At one point, the broadcast showed both LeBron James and Luka Doncic getting worked on by training staff but he stayed in the game. The 26-year-old Slovenian finished with a team-high 34 points.
The 40-year-old James, who recently became the first player in NBA history to score 50,000 career points, finished the game one assist shy of a triple-double with 22 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists.
Despite attempts to cut the deficit, the Lakers could not find any answers to stop Tatum and the Celtics.
With just over two minutes left, Tatum knocked down a dagger three pointer to extend the lead to 105-95.
The win gives Boston its 46th win of the season while the Lakers fall to 40-22.
Tatum expressed the importance of the rivarly between both the franchises to the ESPN broadcast after the game.
“It’s an honor, the history, tradition, all the legends that wore these uniforms, that competed in these battles,” Tatum said. “The NBA is a better place when the Lakers and Celtics are good.”
Both teams will be back in action on Monday as the Celtics host the Utah Jazz while the Lakers travel to the Barclays Center to take on the Brooklyn Nets in the second of their four-game road trip.
