New England Patriots fans are perhaps green with envy over the success the Boston Celtics are enjoying these days. One of their most recent triumphs, however, did offer a warm trip down memory lane.
The Celtics brought victorious Sundays back to the New England area last weekend, crushing the Golden State Warriors by a 140-88 final. With the win, Boston (48-12) became the first team in NBA history to win three games by a margin of at least 50 points.
Calling the game for ABC, play-by-play man Ryan Ruocco noticed that the Celtics had embarked upon several one-sided runs en route to an 82-38 halftime lead ... one of which featured one of the most famous, beloved margins in New England sports history.
"Joe Mazzula’s team, since the six-minute mark of the first quarter, has outscored the Warriors 28-3,” Ruocco said during first half action. “Which, thanks to the (Atlanta) Falcons, is a number that they like hearing around these parts.”
That magic margin, of course, appeared on Super Bowl LI's scoreboard when the Patriots faced the Falcons in Houston. While Georgians have been haunted by the digits for the last seven years, they've created euphoria in New England to the point where March 28 has become a bit of an unofficial holiday in the area.
To drive the point home further, Ruocco pointed out another serendipitous occurrence: entering Sunday's game, the Celtics had a 28-3 record at TD Garden this season. All that and more hints that, though the Patriots face a long way back to respectability, New England's championship thirst could well be satisfied by the Celtics come this summer.
The Celtics return to action on Tuesday night when they face the Cleveland Cavaliers (7:30 p.m. ET, TNT). Another number well-worshipped by Patriots fans is on the line: with one more win, the Celtics will have won 12 in a row, matching the jersey number of franchise legend Tom Brady.
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