Jaylen Brown scored 31 points and fed Luke Kornet for the game-winning basket as the Boston Celtics defeated the Toronto Raptors 120-118 on Friday night.
With 32 seconds left, Boston found Kornet for a slam after Scottie Barnes knotted the game at 116 with a 3-pointer with 47 seconds remaining. When Barnes drove down the lane but couldn’t finish, Boston led 119-117. Toronto’s Pascal Siakam stepped to the line with 1.4 seconds left, down by three points after a replay ruled a foul happened before the final horn. He made the first but missed the second as the Celtics ran out of time.
Brown, who missed Boston’s overtime victory over the Detroit Pistons on Thursday due to a back issue, swished 3-pointers on three consecutive plays in the first quarter. The All-Star guard made 5 of 6 three-point attempts and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Derrick White had 21 points and Kornet had 20 for Boston, which committed 16 turnovers, resulting in 22 points for Toronto.
The Celtics, who were missing starters Jayson Tatum and Kristaps Porzingis, as well as vital reserve Al Horford, advanced to 16-0 at home and have the best record in the league (25-6). Boston won its fifth straight game and tenth in 11 attempts.
Boston led by 15 points at halftime and was up by double digits heading into the fourth quarter. With 8:18 remaining, Toronto took its first lead since the first quarter when Dennis Schroder drilled a 3-pointer from the right wing.
Barnes led Toronto with 30 points on 7-of-15 3-point shooting, while Siakam added 28. Boston has won all three games versus Toronto this season.