Celtics Stampede the Herd in Wire-To-Wire Win

PORTLAND, Maine. - The Celtics bounced back in a big way on Friday night with a wire-to-wire 105-90 win over the Wisconsin Herd.

After falling to the Herd 117-115 in overtime on Thursday night, Maine splits the two-game series to improve to 3-2 in the regular season.

Baylor Scheierman was the catalyst on offense for the Celtics, leading the way with 23 points on 9-18 shooting from the field. Maine also saw big contributions from its bench with Ron Harper Jr. and Jay Scrubb each scoring 17 points for the Celtics. Two-Way guard JD Davison added 16 points and five assists.

No player scored more than 20 points for the Herd, who struggled to score against a stingy Celtics defense. Terence Davis led Wisconsin with a team-high 14 points. Chris Livingston added 12 points and Tyler Smith and Jack Gohlke each added 11 points for the Herd.

Maine improved to 3-1 in games where they held their opponent under 100 points. Wisconsin shot just 34.9% from the field, including 29.5% from beyond the arc. The Celtics were good on 48.8% of their shots from the floor.

After a tough finish on Thursday night, Maine was hoping for a strong start and they got it from two of their Boston players. Scheierman shot lights out to start the first quarter. The Celtics 2024 first round draft pick connected on his first three shots to account for eight of Maine's first 12 points. Davison also tallied eight points to start the game as the Celtics claimed a 23-16 advantage after the first quarter.

Maine's lead grew to 11 after back to back triples from Hason Ward and Ron Harper Jr. to lead the Herd 35-24 with 8:22 to go in the first half. Harper Jr. returned to the lineup after being out with injury in the first leg of the back to back with Wisconsin. Harper Jr. continued to show why he's one of the top scorers off the bench in the G league, racking up 14 first half points. Despite shooting just 35.7% from the field in the half, the Herd went on a 12-0 run to pull within one with 1:35 to play. Scheierman led Maine's response with five points in the final 90 seconds to give the Celtics a 50-46 lead at the break.

Scheierman picked up where he left off in the third quarter, scoring five points in the first two minutes. The sharpshooting was part of a 17-0 run to extend the Celtics lead to 19 midway through the quarter. Wisconsin's scoring drought lasted nearly five minutes until Justin Moore stopped the bleeding with a triple. Maine's Scrubb was also feeling it in the third, providing eight points off the bench to help the Celtics lead by as many as 22. Maine outscored the Herd 36-23 in the quarter to lead 86-69 entering the final quarter.

In Thursday night's loss to the Herd, Maine held a 12-point lead to begin the final frame. Wisconsin rallied back to win that one in overtime, but that would not be the case on Friday. The Celtics never let Wisconsin go on a run, and kept the Herd under 35% shooting for the game as Maine bounced back in a big way to win 105-90 in front of a sellout crowd at the Portland Expo.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Baylor Scheierman was the player of the game after leading Maine in scoring with 23 points, six rebounds, and two assists. Scheierman was 9-18 from the field, and converted on 5-12 shots from beyond the arc.

THE ROAD AHEAD: Maine plays their third home game in four days when they return to the Expo on Sunday to face Birmingham. The game tips off at 1 p.m. and will air live on NBA TV and on tape delay on NBC Sports Boston.

MEMIC INJURY REPORT:

Maine: Don Carey, Jr. (OUT) - Injury/Illness, Eric Gaines (OUT) - Injury/Illness, Dmytro Skapintsev (OUT) - Injury/Illness, Drew Peterson (NWT).

Wisconsin: Justise Winslow (OUT) - Injury/Illness, Ade Murkey (OUT) - Injury/Illness, James Akinjo (OUT) - Injury/Illness, Dennis Smith Jr. (NWT), Ryan Rollins (NWT), Stanley Umude (NWT).