Celtics Slow Down Hustle to Win Sixth Straight

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The Maine Celtics dominated the Memphis Hustle 127-115 on Monday night to earn their sixth consecutive win.

Maine (12-9) had three players score 20 points or more, led by 32 points, 13 assists, and 8 rebounds by JD Davison. Jordan Schakel posted his best scoring performance in a Maine Celtics uniform with 26 points and Drew Peterson added 22 points, 9 assists, and 6 rebounds. Both Schakel and Peterson buried five shots from deep in the game.

Memphis (7-8) was led by a game-high 33 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists by DJ Steward. Miles Norris added 24 points and connected on 6-of-10 shots from beyond the arc.

The Celtics jumped out to an early 7-0 lead against the Hustle. Maine didn't allow Memphis to make a field goal through over four minutes of play. Miles Norris broke that scoring drought and the Hustle scored three consecutive field goals to take their first lead of the game, 10-9. Maine would quickly regain the lead behind 12 first quarter points by Davison as the Celtics led the Hustle 32-27 after the first quarter.

Maine extended their lead over the Hustle in the second quarter as Maine shot nearly fifty percent from three. Donald Carey Jr. buried his third of the game with 8:35 left in the second quarter to give the Celtics a 12-point lead. Carey Jr. scored all 11 of his points in the first half. Davison buried a three of his own at the 6:07 mark to help Maine take their largest lead of the half, 55-42. A lay-up by Bacot cut the Celtics lead down to just five with less than two minutes to go in the first half. Led by 19 points from Davison, four Maine players scored in double figures as Maine carried a 66-60 lead into the break. Schakel was 3-for-5 from deep with 15 points as the Celtics connected on 11-of-26 shots from beyond the arc. Steward led Memphis with 15 first half points.

Memphis cut the Celtics lead down to three, but Maine quickly responded by jumping back out to an 11-point lead after Davison assisted on a Hason Ward dunk with 7:10 to play in the third quarter. Ward finished with a 14-point, 14-rebound double-double. Davison later found Schakel who connected on another triple with 4:54 remaining to cap off a 9-0 run for Maine as the Celtics grew their lead to 18. Memphis rallied back, and a transition lay-up by Norris with 1:25 to go cut the Maine lead down to seven. Norris would bury his fifth triple of the game for the Hustle as Maine carried a 98-92 lead into the final quarter.

The Hustle entered Monday night's game 0-14 when trailing entering the fourth quarter. James Banks III knocked down a short floater to push the lead back up to double digits nearly two minutes into the quarter, 102-92. The Celtics turned up the intensity on defense in the fourth quarter, allowing just five Memphis points through the first six minutes. Maine would lead by as many as 19 in the quarter, but the Hustle fought to make things interesting late. Steward scored with 1:03 to go to cut the lead down to seven, but the Celtics responded with five consecutive points to beat the Hustle 127-115 and earn their sixth consecutive win. Maine is now 9-1 in games where they score over 120 points.

The Celtics shot 43-91 (47.3%) from the floor, including 18-45 (40.0%) from three. Maine had 30 total assists on 43 field goals. Memphis finished Monday's game 42-95 (44.2%) from the floor and 16-47 (34%) from three.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: JD Davison was the Player of the Game after leading Maine to its sixth consecutive win with 32 points, 8 rebounds, and 13 assists. The Celtics Two-Way Player is now just 10 assists away from 1,000 career assists. Davison also snagged two steals for Maine.

THE ROAD AHEAD: Maine returns home to the Portland Expo to battle the Long Island Nets on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. The game will broadcast live on ESPN+ and NBC Sports Boston.