On January 16th, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued with the defending champions, the Celtics, facing off against the Raptors on the road. The Raptors started strong, quickly taking control of the game, while the Celtics struggled to catch up. However, the Raptors maintained their momentum, especially in the fourth quarter when they widened the gap, leaving the Celtics unable to recover. Ultimately, the Celtics suffered a surprising defeat, losing 97-110 to the Raptors.
In the first quarter, the Raptors came out hot with Barnes and Mitchell hitting back-to-back threes, followed by a three-pointer from Dick and a layup from Abaji, giving them a 15-5 lead. Porzingis scored on a solo play, Brown dunked, and Barrett hit a three-pointer, while Porzingis followed up with two consecutive threes to close the gap. Shed also hit a three-pointer, to which Tatum responded, and Barrett completed a fast break with a dunk. Pritchard's three-pointer put the Celtics ahead, and Horford scored under the basket, ending the first quarter with the Celtics leading 29-25.
During the second quarter, White hit a three-pointer, and Pritchard continued to score, allowing the Celtics to take the initiative. Boucher's three-pointer helped the Raptors stop the bleeding. Both teams then engaged in a seesaw battle, with Oladipo hitting a three-pointer and Dick making a jumper, allowing the Raptors to regain control. Porzingis hit a three-pointer to stabilize the situation, but the Raptors continued to attack and score. Porzingis scored under the basket, Tatum hit a three-pointer, and Abaji responded with a three-pointer of his own. Mitchell scored on a fast break, and Pritchard hit another three-pointer. Barrett made consecutive drives to the basket, and Pritchard hit yet another three-pointer, ending the half with the score at 53-55.
In the third quarter, Porzingis hit a three-pointer, and both teams exchanged blows on offense. Tatum hit a three-pointer to take the lead, but Dick's three-pointer stabilized the situation for the Raptors, who remained in control. Brown also hit a three-pointer, but the Raptors continued to attack the paint and score, with Mitchell adding points on a drive, giving them a 77-69 lead. Pritchard and Horford hit three-pointers to close the gap, but Mitchell responded, and the Celtics were unable to maintain their momentum, ending the third quarter trailing 82-88.
In the final quarter, the Raptors continued their strong offensive performance, widening the gap to double digits. The Celtics struggled with their outside shooting, unable to close the gap, and the game gradually lost its suspense. In the end, the Raptors defeated the Celtics 110-97, with the home crowd standing and cheering.
In this game, the Celtics' offense was lackluster, with the twin stars performing poorly. Tatum shot 5 for 15, scoring only 16 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, while Brown shot 4 for 16, scoring 10 points. Pritchard tried his best with 20 points. On the other hand, the Raptors had multiple players contributing, with Barrett scoring 22 points, grabbing 10 rebounds, and dishing out 8 assists, and Barnes adding 16 points and 9 assists.