Sunday's Showcase between the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors was supposed to be an exciting matchup between the 2022 NBA Finalists. The Celtics opened as 10-point favorites over the Warriors. The C's ended up quintupling that number, blowing the Warriors away 140-88 in front of a frenzied TD Garden crowd. The 52-point drubbing was Boston’s third win by at least 50 points this year, setting a new record for the most 50-point wins in NBA history.
The game was out of hand virtually from the get-go. Boston entered halftime with an 82-38 lead. That 44-point first-half advantage was the largest in franchise history. The 82 points also marked the Celtics' highest-scoring half since 1997-98, when the NBA began tracking the data.
The 52-point blowout was Boston’s fifth all-time win by at least 50 points. Remarkably, four of those have come in the Jayson Tatum era. Tatum turned 26 on Sunday, and the birthday boy celebrated by scoring 27 points in only 25 minutes. Fellow All-Star Jaylen Brown led the team with 29 points in 22 minutes of action.
Boston is in firm control of the East, owning an 8.5 game lead over the Cavaliers and Bucks when the final whistle blew. They are the favorites to win the NBA Finals with +210 odds at FanDuel.
The Warriors, though, are in a precarious position. They’re currently tied for the ninth-seed with the Lakers, and three back from the Suns for the sixth-seed, which would grant them safety from the Play-In Tournament.
Sunday's 52-point defeat was the third-worst loss in Golden State history, and second worst in the Steve Kerr era. They lost by 63 points to the Lakers in 1972, and by 53 to the Raptors late in the 2021 campaign.
