Tatum ends shooting slump with 51 points

WASHINGTON – Jayson Tatum busted out of a shooting slump by nailing nine three pointers en route to a season-high 51 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a 116-87 blowout win over the Washington Wizards on Sunday.

Tatum drained nine-of-14 threes Sunday at Capital One Arena after missing his previous 20 this season from beyond the arc.

He made his first four three-point attempts and finished six-of-seven in the first half on Sunday.

This marked his fifth career 50-point game and he also had 10 rebounds and seven assists in front of the crowd of 16,300 in Washington.

“To Tatum’s credit, he had a night,” said Wizards coach Wes Unseld. “Obviously, 51 points, it’s a real number. I think he was six-for-eight on pull-up threes, which are tough shots. No excuse. He’s been struggling, but he found his rhythm tonight.”

Teammate Jaylen Brown tallied four threes as the Celtics went 19-of-39 overall from three-point range and combined that with a stout defensive effort for the victory.

Marcus Smart (11 points) and Grant Williams (10 points) each made two baskets from beyond the arc. Smart also had six assists and four steals.

It was the Celtics’ best defensive performance since holding the New York Knicks to just 75 points on Jan. 8.

The Wizards shot just eight-of-34 from three-point range as Spencer Dinwiddie missed all seven of his three attempts.

Elsewhere, Jimmy Butler finished with a triple-double of 20 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds as the Miami Heat held on to beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 113-107.

Butler posted his 10th triple-double with Miami breaking the team record for triple doubles which was held by LeBron James, who led the Lakers with 33 points on Sunday.