BOSTON — Jason Tatum is adamant that he didn't see the Boston Celtics' matchup with the Brooklyn Nets as an opportunity to prove anything unlike the league's two elite scorers.
His finish in Game 1 said otherwise.
Tatum scored a layup on the buzzer on a pass from Marcus Smart to give Boston a dramatic 115-114 win on Sunday in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series.
"When he took that dribble, we just made eye contact," Tatum said of Smart. "He made a great pass. Couldn't get any better than this. A buzzer-beater in a playoff game at home."
Tatum scored the last two, 31 points on the first buzzer-beater of his career. It was Boston's first in the post season since Paul Pierce against the Miami Heat in 2010.
Tatum's bucket came in the frantic final seconds during the Boston capture. After Kevin Durant missed at the other end, the Celtics returned and raced to the court, electing not to call a timeout.
Jaylen Brown dribbles to the middle and swings the ball towards Smart. Then he fired it into a bite Tatum, who turned around and dropped into his layup just before time ran out.
"I've always been told that you have more time than you should," Smart said.
All five Celtics took possession of the ball.
"I think it's a microcosm for our season, with people pushing the ball selflessly," Boston coach Ime Udoka said.
Dating back to last season, Tatum has four straight 30-point games in the playoffs, matching Larry Bird in 1987 for the longest such streak in Celtics history.
Brown added 23 points. Horford had 20 points and 15 rebounds. And Smart finished with 20 points, including four 3-pointers.
Kyrie Irving collected 39 points, including 18 in the fourth quarter. But the Celtics last had the ball out of their hands near Brooklyn, and Durant missed a jumper, setting up the Celtics' eventual possession.
Durant added 23 points but scored only 9 points out of 24.
"He did a good job of helping me to get away, then paint," Durant said. "I have to be more original in my moves. I think some shots went in and out for me."
Boston took a 23-8 lead at halftime to lead 82-69, thanks to Smart's deadeye shooting from outside the arc.
The Celtics also seemed to divert their approach to guard Durant at half court, sending help over the top to put him in front and limit his driving ability.
Durant and Irving still found ways to score, but they had to put in more energy to get the most out of their efforts.
It doesn't last.
With Boston advancing to fourth, Irving got Brooklyn back with two straight 3-pointers and a layup to reduce Boston's advantage to 98–97. After an empty trip to Boston, in which Brown and Horford failed to convert a close, Durant calmly fired a 3 at the other end.
Brooklyn extended their lead to 107–102 when Durant was long with a jumper. Brown found a place in the Celtics' next possession and joined the wing on 3. The Nets made it back on an offensive foul on Durant. Smart then slipped under Irving and tied him up on the assured trip to Boston.
Less than 2 minutes later, the score was level again at 109 when Durant got a friendly bounce off a jumper. Horford's follow shot tied it again. But Irving was good from deep, cushioning the Nets 114-111 under the floor next time.
Brown then made it out of the timeout with 38 seconds remaining.
In his latest visit to face his former Boston teammates, Irving received the loudest cheer during pregame introductions and gushed whenever he touched the ball the rest of the way.
Fans also showered considerable disdain at Bruce Brown, who made headlines last week after suggesting Celtics big men Horford and Daniel Theis could be easy to attack inside without injured center Robert Williams III available to defend the rim. Is.
Horford played the opening 12 minutes as if on a one-man mission to dispel that notion.
Boston entered the league with the best defensive rating since the All-Star break and applied early pressure on Durant. He tried to establish himself in this position in the first quarter, but the Celtics attacked with backside assisted defenders separating him three times.
Brooklyn finished with seven turnovers for the quarter, but that only translated into a 29-28 lead for Boston.
Horford was active the entire time, going 3-for-4 off the field with 10 points, two rebounds and a steal.
Boston had to adjust early in the second quarter after Theis took their third foul. But things went even further when Brooklyn center Andre Drummond was whistled for his fourth foul, with 4:58 left in the period.
The Celtics immediately went 9-2 before the Nets brought the game back to tie 61 in the half.
"Stay with it, take your shot and find a way to end the game," Horford said. "At the end of the day, it's just winning, no matter what it was like."