SALT LAKE CITY — The Jaylen Brown 30-point barrage was overshadowed in the second half of the Celtics’ 129-119 victory over the Jazz at the Delta Center by the defensive brilliance of Derrick White and shot making of Payton Pritchard.
With Brown on the bench for the first half of the fourth quarter, the Celtics used White and Pritchard with a sprinkle of Anfernee Simons to pull away from the pesky Jazz and respond from the disappointing performance in Portland with a win Tuesday.
Brown finished with 23 points on 9-for-19 shooting and had 10 assists. He canned a pair of difficult fadeaways to seal Boston’s fourth victory in five games, but it was White, the defensive ace, who sparked the Celtics’ scoring 22 of his team-high 27 points in the second half. He finished with a career-high 7 blocked shots, 7 rebounds and 6 assists.
Simons scored 20, including a corner triple for a 11-point lead with 3:56 left. Pritchard added 18 along with 6 assists while Luka Garza scored 15 off the bench.
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Keyonte George continued to pester the Celtics, scoring a game-high 37 points while big man Jusuf Nurkic scored 26.
The Celtics’ won despite going 13 for 44 from the 3-point line. They were 35 for 50 from inside the arc and won the rebounding battle, 44-40.
White and Pritchard were able to make shots and help the Celtics retake the lead after trailing 64-59 at half. Pritchard focused on scoring with his array of spins and up-and-under moves while White began attacking the rim and knocked down his first 3-pointer after missing his first six attempts.
Simons provided a lift off the bench and knocked down a 3-pointer for a 94-88 lead with 3:06 left. The Jazz kept coming back, as Kyle Filipowski answered with a 3-pointer to pull the Jazz within 94-91 after three periods.
Celtics guard Payton Pritchard buries a 3-pointer in Tuesday night’s 129-119 victory over the Jazz in Salt Lake City.Tyler Tate/Associated Press
One thing that’s been certain in the first six quarters of basketball between these two teams, the Celtics have had no defensive answer for Keyonte George, the speedy and crafty Jazz point guard who was able to get to his preferred spots and knock down threes.
After scoring 31 points in Utah’s Nov. 3 win at Boston, George followed with 23 first-half points on 8-for-15 shooting. He drained four 3-pointers, including a difficult corner triple in front of the Jazz bench.
After falling behind, 52-42, the Jazz ended the half on a 22-7 run as the Celtics found trouble scoring in the paint and in midrange.
Brown, vying for his club record 10th consecutive game of 30 or more points, tallied 10 at halftime on 3-for-10 shooting, missing a handful of his favorite stepback jumpers. Garza led the Celtics with 11 points at halftime and Queta also scored 10.
But the combination of White and Pritchard continued to struggle, going a combined 4 for 13 from the field and 1 for 9 from the 3-point line in the first two periods.
The Celtics looked haggard in the early going, falling behind, 18-6, as George scored 10 during that run. The defense buckled down and started to get stops while the bench sparked a late first-period run with buckets from Garza and Simons.
The Celtics opened the second period with an 18-2 run behind the reserves for a 49-40 lead and White followed with a difficult floater off the glass and free throw for a 52-42 lead, but the Jazz countered with an 8-0 run and the Celtics offense sputtered for the rest of the half.
The Celtics shot 42.3 percent from the field and missed 20 of 27 from 3-point range. The starters again struggled offensively, missing 12 of 14 attempts from beyond the arc.
The Jazz thrilled the home crowd with a couple of stunning plays, as 6-foot-3 rookie Walter Clayton Jr. cupped his dribble and then dunked on White. In the first period, Brice Sensabaugh steamrolled Sam Hauser en route to a layup as the Jazz punched first.
Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.
