Payton Pritchard nets 36 as Celtics halt Hawks
Payton Pritchard tossed in a game-high 36 points and had seven rebounds to help the Boston Celtics end the Atlanta Hawks' three-game winning streak with a 109-102 home victory Friday night.
Pritchard made 13 of 23 field goal attempts, including 6 of 11 3-point shots. Jayson Tatum added 26 points, 12 rebounds and five assists for Boston (49-24).
The Hawks (41-33) trailed by four points with 2:41 left, but failed to get any closer.
Jalen Johnson had 29 points, six rebounds and six assists to lead Atlanta. The Hawks received 21 points from CJ McCollum and 20 from Nickeil Alexander-Walker.
Jaylen Brown, Boston's leading scorer, did not play because of left Achilles tendinitis. Brown is averaging 28.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game. The Celtics are 7-1 in games Brown has missed this season.
Despite the loss, Atlanta has won 14 of its last 16 games, and is 15-3 since the All-Star break.
A Gabe Vincent 3-pointer capped an 18-2 run that gave the Hawks a 25-9 lead with 4:05 left in the opening quarter, but the Celtics scored the next 10 points to pull within six. Atlanta was up 29-26 after one quarter.
A 9-0 spurt allowed Boston to tie the game, 37-37, and the Celtics had a 43-40 lead following a Sam Hauser 3-pointer with 5:55 left in the second. Atlanta used a 7-0 run to move in front 49-46 and led 60-55 at halftime. The Hawks made 10 of 20 3-point attempts in the first half, but finished 15 of 42 from behind the arc in the game.
Pritchard made a 3-pointer to give Boston a 69-68 lead with 7:25 to play in the third. The Celtics outscored the Hawks 32-22 in the third and had an 87-82 lead entering the fourth.
Boston had its first double digit lead following a Neemias Queta basket that made it 95-84 with 9:14 to play.
The Celtics and Hawks will also meet Monday in Atlanta.