Payton Pritchard scores 24 points, Celtics roll past Ja Morant-less Grizzlies 131-95

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BOSTON (AP) — Payton Pritchard hit five 3-pointers, scored 24 points and had nine assists and the Boston Celtics used a big second half to run past the Memphis Grizzlies 131-95 on Wednesday night.

The Grizzlies played without Ja Morant, the star guard who sat out because of a right ankle injury sustained Tuesday night in a loss at New York.

Derrick White added 20 points for Boston, and Jaylen Brown had 19.

The Celtics never trailed, made 21 3-pointers and led by 38 points. They also pushed the Grizzlies around inside, outrebounding them 58-41 and holding a 34-12 edge in second-chance points.

Jaren Jackson Jr. had 18 points for Memphis, which lost for the seventh time in eight games. Santi Aldama finished with 14 points.

Morant had appeared in five straight games following a one-game suspension Nov. 2 at Toronto for what the Grizzlies said was conduct detrimental to the team.

Without its star, Memphis struggled to keep pace with Boston’s offensive output, shooting 34% (32 of 95) from the field and 10 of 43 from the 3-point line.

A night after shooting under 28%in the first half of their loss at Philadelphia on Tuesday the Celtics found their range at home, connecting on 53% (27 of 51) of their shots in opening 24 minutes to take a 67-46 lead.

Grizzlies: At Cavaliers on Saturday.

Celtics: Host Clippers on Sunday.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA