Jayson Tatum helps Celtics snap recent home skid

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) reacts during the third quarter of game against the San Antonio Spurs at the TD Garden. Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

Jayson Tatum's dominant performance vs. Spurs helps Celtics snap recent home skid

By Clark Dalton | Last updated Feb 12, 2025 10:53 PM ET

Boston Celtics small forward Jayson Tatum made a promise to the team's fans before Wednesday night's matchup against the San Antonio Spurs.

"We give up too many easy ones at home, so we got to make up for it," Tatum told NBC Sports Boston's Abby Chin following a 103-85 win over the Miami Heat Tuesday. "We need to get back on track at home because we let our fans down too many times this year and sometimes last year, so we owe it to them to play better, and we're going to figure it out."

Tatum kept his promise against San Antonio. In the first half, he scored 21 points, helping the Celtics race to a 66-47 lead at halftime.

1st Half Jayson Tatum:

☘️ 21 PTS
☘️ 8 REB
☘️ 4 AST
☘️ 4 3PT

✨All-Star Starter things✨ pic.twitter.com/wjDgncf9L4
— NBA TV (@NBATV) February 13, 2025

The Spurs cut the Celtics' lead to 95-87 early in the fourth quarter, but they couldn't dig themselves out of their early hole. Boston won 116-103. Tatum finished with 32 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists in 38 minutes.

The Celtics are now 39-16 and 17-10 at home. Before Wednesday's matchup, they had lost three of their last four home games.

In six games in February, Tatum has scored 30 points or more four times. His recent tear could help him break a franchise record.

Tatum is on pace to average 25-plus points per game for a fifth straight season. Through his first 51 games, Tatum logged 26.9 PPG. If he maintains that number, Tatum will surpass Larry Bird's record for the most consecutive seasons (1984-88) averaging 25-plus PPG in franchise history.

Jayson Tatum is on pace to average 25+ PPG for the 5th straight season, which would pass Larry Bird's record (1984-1988) for the most consecutive seasons averaging 25+ PPG in Celtics franchise history. pic.twitter.com/HY32OKQeqN
— NBA (@NBA) February 12, 2025

During this six-game stretch, Boston is 5-1.

Tatum staying in the groove could also help the Celtics avoid losing more games at TD Garden.

Clark Dalton

Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.

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