Mikal Bridges scores 38 points, Nets rally to stun Celtics 115-105

BOSTON (AP) —Mikal Bridges was considered a defensive star and complementaryoffensive player in Phoenix before abruptly having his five-yearrun there ended when he was shipped to Brooklyn as part of thetrade that sent Kevin Durant to the Suns.

Bridges gavehis new team another glimpse of the go-to potential he could growinto.

Bridgesscored 38 points and the Nets overcame a 28-point deficit to stunthe Boston Celtics 115-105 on Friday night.

He hasreached 30 or more points in three of Brooklyn’s last six games.Bridges also had 10 rebounds, playing nearly 43 minutes.

“I think wekind or realized over a couple of games that offense wasn’t reallyour problem,” Bridges said. “I feel like our offense is prettygood. But our defense, we got stops and stayed togetherpossession-by-possession. ... We just kept and stayedtogether.”

It wasBrooklyn’s first victory over Boston in four meetings thisseason.

Bridgesplayed through pain in the second half after knocking knees withDerrick White, hitting on the same spot he did in a similarcollision with Jalen Brunson in Wednesday loss to the Knicks.

“I think whenI got traded it was kind of at the right time because wheneverybody was out in Phoenix I had to take up another roleoffensively and be more aggressive,” Bridges said. “By the time Igot traded I was in a great rhythm and was confident.”

Fellow formerSun Cam Johnson added 20 points. Dorian Finney-Smith finished with17.

It is thelargest comeback by a Boston opponent since the Los AngelesClippers also rallied from 28 down to beat Boston 123-112 at TDGarden on Feb. 9, 2019.

The Celticshave lost two out of three and lost more ground on East-leadingMilwaukee, which was idle Friday. Boston, which made 26 3-pointersin a 139-96 win over the Nets on Feb. 1, went just 9 of 30 frombeyond the arc on Friday.

“They beat usin every analytical category possible,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzullasaid. “If we don’t commit to the margins, no matter how hard weplay, we’re not going to win.”

Jaylen Brownled Boston with 35 points. Jayson Tatum, who was celebrating his25th birthday, added 22 points and 13 rebounds.

Boston led by28 in the first half before being outscored 69-43 over the secondand third quarters.

The Netsscored just 23 points in the first 16 minutes of the game, allowingBoston to go up 51-23 with 7:23 left in the first half.

It evaporatedin a rash of pull up jumpers and one-and-done possesses for theCeltics as Brooklyn mounted a 57-23 run to nudge in front 80-74with 3:56 in the third quarter. The lead was 106-90 early in thefourth.

During onewild sequence, the Nets secured four offensive rebounds and hadfive shots on a single possession before the Celtics were finallyable to corral the ball, triggering a fast break and layup byDerrick White. It was one of the few highlights for Boston the restof the way.

The Nets’frantic rally also saw the Celtics lose big man Robert Williams forthe night after he left early in the third with left hamstringtightness.

A 3-pointerby Marcus Smart got Boston as close as 110-102 with just over fourminutes to play. But Finney-Smith answered with a triple of his ownon the Nets’ next possession.

The lead grewas high as 51-23 early in the second, but the Nets chipped it down64-55 at halftime.

NEWINJURY FOR SIMMONS

Nets coachJacque Vaughn said Ben Simmons began experiencing some backsoreness this week while starting to increase his activity tostrengthen the sore left knee that has kept him sidelined since theAll-Star break restart. There isn’t a timeline for him to return,and there hasn’t been discussion of sitting him down for theremainder of the season.

TIP-INS

Nets:Outscored the Celtics 40-27 in the second quarter, shooting 65% (15of 23) from the field. Bridges had 15 points in the period. …Johnson, who celebrated his 27th birthday, was whistled for threefouls in less than three minutes of action. It contributed to theNets putting Boston in the bonus at the 8:48 mark of the openingquarter.

Celtics:Finished with 19 turnovers, leading to 21 Brooklyn points. ...Went0 for 6 from 3-point line in third quarter. … Al Horford played his1,000th career regular-season game. He’s only the 11th activeplayer to reach that plateau. After his milestone was announced tothe TD Garden crowd, he capped the ensuing possession with a3-pointer to put Boston in front 16-5.

UPNEXT

Nets: HostCharlottes on Sunday night.

Celtics: HostNew York on Sunday night.