Payton Pritchard hits all five 3s in a blazing third quarter as Celtics rout Bulls 134-99

Final: Celtics 134, Bulls 99. Payton Pritchard made all five of his 3-point attempts in a scorching third quarter and finished with 28 points as the Boston Celtics blew out the Chicago Bulls at TD Garden on Monday night, Oct. 26.

Jayson Tatum added 23 points, seven rebounds and six assists, and Paul George scored 16 for Boston, which improved to 2-1. Norman Powell led Chicago with 20 points as the Bulls fell to 1-3.

Pritchard’s third quarter broke it open

Boston never trailed. The Celtics opened a 16-point lead early in the second quarter and were up 12 at halftime, according to the Associated Press. Then the third quarter turned a comfortable game into a rout.

Boston outscored Chicago 39-21 in the period, and Pritchard scored 19 of those points. George, Pritchard and Sam Hauser each hit a 3-pointer in a 93-second stretch that pushed the lead to 89-70 late in the quarter. Two minutes later, Pritchard drilled back-to-back 3s to make it 101-73. The Celtics made 8 of 13 from deep in the third and led by 30 entering the fourth.

Pritchard came off the bench and finished 10-for-16 from the field and 7-for-10 from 3-point range in under 22 minutes, per the NBA.com box score.

Score by quarter

Tatum’s strong first half

Before Pritchard’s surge, Tatum carried the scoring. He had 19 of his 23 points in the first half, including a buzzer-beating drive at the end of the first quarter and a long 3-pointer with 0.8 seconds left in the second, the AP reported.

It followed a 36-point night from Tatum in Friday’s home-opening win over the Knicks.

Bulls’ 3-point struggles continue

Chicago came into the night with the league’s worst 3-point percentage at 22.6%, and nothing changed on Monday. The Bulls missed 15 of their first 19 attempts from beyond the arc and finished 12-for-44 (27.3%). Boston, by contrast, went 21-for-44 (47.7%).

The Celtics also controlled the paint (46-30) and fast breaks (17-8), according to the official scorer’s report.

Player stats

Celtics

• Payton Pritchard: 28 points, 4 assists, 7-of-10 from 3
• Jayson Tatum: 23 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists
• Paul George: 16 points, 5 rebounds
• Hugo González: 13 points, 5 rebounds
• Sam Hauser: 11 points, 3-of-4 from 3
• Derrick White: 5 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals (and 6 turnovers)

Bulls

• Norman Powell: 20 points, 6-of-7 free throws
• Caleb Wilson: 17 points, 5 rebounds
• Josh Giddey: 11 points, 4 assists
• Matas Buzelis: 11 points
• Leonard Miller: 9 points, 9 rebounds off the bench

What’s next: a rematch Friday

The two teams don’t have to wait long to meet again. In a scheduling quirk, the Bulls and Celtics play in Boston again on Friday, the AP noted.

• Celtics (2-1): host the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night.
• Bulls (1-3): host the New York Knicks on Wednesday night.

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