Payton Pritchard leads Boston to dominant victory over Sacramento

Payton Pritchard shined Friday night at TD Garden, scoring 29 points in the Boston Celtics’ dominant victory over the Sacramento Kings (112-93). The backup guard was supported by Baylor Scheierman, who contributed 16 points, in this offensive showcase by the defending champions.

A perfect first half for Boston

The Celtics took control of the game from the start, making their first five shots to quickly build a 15-point lead after the first quarter. Pritchard was brilliant with 22 points and 8 assists in the first half, allowing Boston to lead 72-46 at halftime.

Three-point efficiency made the difference, with Pritchard and Scheierman combining to hit 9 of their 13 attempts from long range. Derek White also contributed with 9 assists, perfectly orchestrating the Celtics’ offensive game.

Sacramento continues its negative spiral

This loss marks the eighth consecutive defeat for the Kings, who were playing the second game of a difficult back-to-back. Zach LaVine tried to keep Sacramento afloat with 17 points, supported by Nique Clifford and his 15 points, but the gap continued to widen.

Absences weighed heavily for the visitors, who were without Domantas Sabonis (knee), Keegan Murray (left ankle sprain) and Russell Westbrook (right foot pain). Malik Monk was back after missing Thursday’s game against Philadelphia. Frenchman Maxime Raynaud recorded a big double-double.

Maxime RAYNAUD

14

PTS

14

REB

1

PDE

BOS

11293

SAC

The Celtics’ lead peaked at 31 points in the third quarter, despite coach Joe Mazzulla’s officiating challenges, which he won twice. Neemias Queta completed the team performance with 10 points and 15 rebounds.

On the Boston side, Jaylen Brown was absent due to a hamstring strain and knee contusion, his fourth absence of the season. Sacramento drops to 3 wins and 22 losses on the road and remains winless at 0-5 on this six-game road trip. The Celtics will host Milwaukee on Sunday, while the Kings will face Washington.