Three Celtics hit career highs
Three members of the Celtics had big scoring nights: Baylor Scheierman poured in 30 points while Luka Garza and Ron Harper Jr. each scored 27. (x.com). Those individual career-high outputs were among the more surprising late-season performances fans were talking about as the regular season closed. (x.com).
Boston closed its regular season with an unlikely scoring burst on April 12, as three reserve Celtics reached new career highs in a 113-108 win over Orlando. (nba.com) Baylor Scheierman scored 30 points, Ron Harper Jr. added 27, and Luka Garza scored 27 with 12 rebounds at TD Garden. Garza hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 31.6 seconds left after Jalen Suggs tied the game at 108. (nba.com) Boston did it with only eight active players and rested eight regular rotation players, including Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, after locking up the Eastern Conference’s No. 2 seed. The Celtics finished 56-26, while Orlando fell to 45-37 and dropped into the No. 8 spot. (nba.com) The swing came in the third quarter, when Boston outscored Orlando 42-20 and hit four 3-pointers in a 1:48 stretch. Scheierman finished with 30 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals in 39 minutes. (nba.com) Harper’s 27 points came with a career-high three steals, and Boston’s team notes said four Celtics set scoring career highs in the finale, including rookie John Tonje with 14 points. The Celtics also went 22-for-22 at the free-throw line. (nba.com) The names made the box score stand out. Scheierman was the 30th pick in the 2024 National Basketball Association draft out of Creighton, while Harper spent much of his path through the G League before Boston converted him to a two-way contract. (nba.com, gleague.nba.com) For Orlando, the loss changed the next step immediately. The Magic entered the day tied with Toronto for sixth after winning five straight, but the defeat sent them to a road play-in game against Philadelphia instead of a home 7-8 game. (espn.com) Boston now waits for its first-round opponent, and the final image of its regular season is a bench-heavy lineup producing 84 points from Scheierman, Garza and Harper. On a night with little at stake for the Celtics in the standings, those three supplied the loudest finish. (espn.com, nba.com)
