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Celtics suffer first loss at home since March 5, 2023, against Knicks

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James Foglio
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James Foglio Sports Editor

James is a Basketball Insiders contributor. He earned his bachelor's degree in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University. James enjoys watching sports and helping gamblers win money.

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Sports Editor

Updated20 Jan 2024

Boston Celtics suffer first loss at home since March 5, 2023, against Knicks

The Boston Celtics lost 102-100 to the Denver Nuggets on Friday night, suffering their first defeat at home this season and first loss since a 131-129 double-overtime defeat against the New York Knicks on March 5, 2023.

Their 20 straight home wins this season were the Celtics’ second most in their franchise history without a loss. Boston’s best regular-season home record is 40-1, which was set in the 1985-86 season.

The Celtics won 33 straight in Boston from Dec. 17, 1986, through Nov. 18, 1987, which is still their longest streak in franchise history.

In Boston’s 127-120 overtime victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday, the club became the 13th team in NBA history to start a season 18-0 at home.

Per a few NBA betting sites, the Celtics remain the front-runners to win this season’s championship. Sportsbooks are still showing great odds for the Nuggets and Milwaukee Bucks.

Moreover, the San Antonio Spurs set the NBA record of 39-0 in the 2015-16 season. The Golden State Warriors in the same season also started 36-0 at home, before the Celtics ended that streak with a win at Oracle Arena.

In Friday’s loss, Boston led 61-55 at halftime after outscoring Denver 29-24 in the second quarter. The Celtics led by as many as 12 points. However, the Nuggets went on to outbound them 47-38 and shoot 42-of-81 (51.9%) from the floor.

The Celtics finished just 38-of-89 (42.7%) shooting from the field. Boston fell to 20-1 at home and 32-10 overall after Jayson Tatum missed a one-legged fadeaway off the rim that was contested by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.

Boston Celtics’ 20-game home win streak ends against Denver Nuggets, falls short of all-time record

Additionally, Tatum admitted after the loss that he wasn’t sure if Denver would use its final foul to give, which would have forced the Celtics, who were out of timeouts, to inbound the ball.

“I think I kind of rushed it, and that’s on me,” he said. “In the back of my mind, I wasn’t sure if they were going to foul. They had a foul to give. But I had more time than I gave myself, so I should have taken some more time. But, can’t go back. Something I can learn from.”

Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla opted not to double-team Nikola Jokic for most of the game as well. It was a costly mistake. Jokic posted 34 points, 12 rebounds, and nine assists in 39 minutes of action. The two-time MVP also shot 14-of-22 (63.6%) from the floor, 2-of-4 (50%) beyond the arc, and he hit all four free throws.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone was proud of how well his stars played against a Boston defense that entered this matchup ranked third in the league in defensive efficiency.


“They played for themselves, and they played for other people,” Malone said. “It was high-level basketball from two All-Star players.”

More importantly, Jokic had dedicated his performance to the late Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojevic, who passed away Wednesday afternoon at the age of 46 after suffering a heart attack in Salt Lake City.

Milojevic coached Jokic in their native Serbia.

“As I mentioned to our team after the game, I couldn’t be more proud of Nikola for playing the way he played with the tragic passing of Deki,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.

Furthermore, this was the first of two regular-season meetings between the Celtics and Nuggets this season. These teams play again in Denver on Thursday, March 7.