Celtics knock out Magic in Game 5 blowout, advance to East semifinals

A slobber-knocker of a first-round playoff series ended with a one-sided steamrolling Tuesday night at TD Garden The Celtics routed the Magic - in Competition to eliminate Orlando and advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals where they ll face either the New York Knicks or the Detroit Pistons Jayson Tatum was terrific again for Boston turning in his third straight -point performance since returning from the wrist injury he suffered in Competition He finished with a game-high points on -of- shooting with assists and eight rebounds Jaylen Brown added points six rebounds and three assists and the bench trio of Payton Pritchard Sam Hauser and Luke Kornet combined for points while going -for- from the field The championship s turning point came when Magic star Paolo Banchero picked up his fifth foul early in the third quarter The Celtics outscored Orlando by points from that point forward to close out the gentleman s sweep Banchero s exit also coincided with the delayed arrival of Boston s record-setting -point attack which was uncharacteristically silent before halftime The Celtics went -for- from beyond the arc in the first half but -for- over the final two quarters with Tatum hitting four of his five second-half threes Related Articles Celtics notebook How rookie inspired Jayson Tatum after wrist injury Celtics rule out starter for Championship of playoff series vs Magic Jayson Tatum reveals inspiration for new -point celebration How Al Horford s unbelievable defense lifted Celtics in Competition win Jayson Tatum Celtics stars shine in bounce-back Challenge win over Magic The Celtics fell behind by nine during a sloppy mistake-filled first quarter Orlando scored nine points off six Boston turnovers and seven points off three offensive rebounds outplaying the Celtics in the all-important margin areas that Mazzulla emphasized after his company s loss in Match Brown committed two of those early turnovers while also struggling to find his shooting touch amid a -for- start from the field Tatum gave the Celtics the spark they needed late in the first With Boston down - he ripped off an - by himself scoring on back-to-back possessions and then drawing fouls on his next two touches After Orlando responded with its own - run that stretched into the second quarter Boston spent the next seven minutes chipping away at that lead while playing a decidedly old-school and un-Celtic-like brand of basketball Relying almost exclusively on shots in the paint and free throws the Celtics took a - lead with remaining in the first half Derrick White banked in an and-one fadeaway against Cole Anthony Tatum picked Banchero s pocket and fed Brown for a fast-break dunk Tatum tied the championship with a driving layup and Brown put the Celtics ahead with a foul-line jumper The Celtics also forced two -second shot-clock violations during that rally Nearly every Boston make in the second quarter came within feet of the basket save for one foot-on-the-line two by Al Horford The Celtics attempted just six total -pointers before halftime and none in the final and missed all of them It was the first time since October a year before Mazzulla became their head coach that the Celtics went an entire first half without a made three But despite that goose egg and their nine first-half turnovers several of which came on botched lobs and entry passes to Kornet the Celtics entered halftime trailing by just two points - The second half then began with a nightmare sequence for the Magic Banchero an ascending superstar who scored at least points in Games through was whistled for three fouls in the first of the third quarter a drawn charge by White followed by two shooting fouls against Brown Those gave Bachero five fouls for the battle with more than minutes remaining and Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley burned his challenge trying to overturn the fifth With Banchero on the bench the Magic collapsed Tied at - at the time of his exit Boston proceeded to outscore Orlando - over the final minutes of the third quarter to bust the contest open Around the midway point of the third the Celtics morphed back into the -point juggernaut they were throughout the regular season and buried their shorthanded foes They drilled seven consecutive triples Tatum Hauser Horford Tatum Pritchard Pritchard Brown as their lead reached points then then Pritchard s and Brown s came on the first three Celtics possessions of the fourth quarter putting Boston ahead - and all but ending Orlando s season Banchero returned to play greater part of the fourth quarter but the Magic who are built to win physical low-scoring rock fights not go shot-for-shot with one of the NBA s most of explosive offenses were spent by that point They shot -for- from -point range over the final three quarters and trailed by as various as points