Jayson Tatum leads the way as the Celtics play overtime to beat the Nets

Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 33 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists, and Payton Pritchard added 20 points off the bench. Boston won despite hitting just 14 of 53 3-pointers (26.4 percent). Cam Thomas led the Nets with 31 points.

The Nets held back the Celtics’ runs all night long and led 88-82 with six minutes left. But then they remained scoreless for more than three minutes and the Celtics took an 89-88 lead with 4:25 left on a layup by Jrue Holiday.

Neither team managed to extend their lead in the next few minutes. With the score tied at 92, Thomas missed a layup with 37 seconds to play and Tatum grabbed the rebound. After a timeout, the Celtics earned a two-on-one chance, with Tatum racing down the lane for a dunk.

The Celtics then somehow allowed sharpshooter Cam Johnson to hit a wide-open three-pointer. They were lucky he missed the ball, but he took the rebound and was fouled. His free throws with 7.6 seconds left tied the score at 94. After a timeout, Tatum tried to create space in the right arc, but his three-point shot missed.

Each team scored on the first four possessions of overtime. After Tatum hit a fadeaway jumper to make it 105-102, Dorian Finney-Smith missed a three-pointer that would have tied the game with 1:10 left. With about 30 seconds left, Brooklyn had another chance to tie the score, but an isolated possession ended with Thomas double-balling a 3-pointer from the top of the key for an airball.

The Celtics got off to a sleepy start. Coach Joe Mazzulla seemed to sense it when he called a timeout just two minutes into the game and Boston responded by turning the ball over on its next possession.

On the other hand, the Nets made their first five shots. The final dart of that flurry, a 3-pointer from the right corner by Finney-Smith, gave Brooklyn a 12-0 lead.

These deficiencies can be erased in a flash, especially by teams as dangerous as the Celtics, but it hasn’t been flawless.

Holiday overcame the Celtics’ three-minute goal loss, but soon after they found themselves trailing 16-2.

The Celtics didn’t have a memorable run in the first half, but gradually faded away. Tatum, who rarely plays in the corners and has only had three 3-pointers on corners this season, reached that number in the first quarter. He mixed quick catch and shoot attempts with steady looks, which he got after throwing off his defender with a pump fake.

Meanwhile, Thomas continued to turn heads for the Celtics, with a series of midfield attempts that are generally frowned upon these days but were productive for him. He had 20 points in the first half.

Pritchard is usually the elixir for a low-energy environment and he fulfilled his role in the second quarter. He made all four of his shots and scored 11 of his 14 points in the first half. Late in the second quarter, he hit a three-pointer from the top of the ball and overwhelmed his defender before scoring inside.

The Celtics never led in the first half, but Pritchard’s late lead helped them get within 51-49 at halftime, seemingly easing early worries about the 14-point deficit.

White turned things up for the Celtics early in the third quarter by converting three consecutive runners on the game, including a 3-point play. But Brooklyn continued to stifle Boston’s runs before they could gain momentum.

After Tatum tied it at 62 with another corner 3-pointer, the Nets responded with a 7-0 win. Tatum enlivened the Celtics by attacking the rim in transition late in the third. He had two layups, was fouled on another drive and then got a steal and a dunk. Still, the third quarter ended with Boston trailing 80-78.

Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.