James Harden Triple-Doubles as Nets Eliminate Jayson Tatum, Celtics with Game 5 Win

The Brooklyn Nets are moving on.

James Harden's triple-double gave Brooklyn the 123-109  victory over the Boston Celtics to clinch the first-round playoff series in five games.

For the Celtics, who recorded their lone win of the series at home in Game 3, Jayson Tatum dropped 32 points.

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Notable Performers

• James Harden, Nets: 34 PTS, 10 REB, 10 AST
• Kyrie Irving, Nets: 25 PTS, 3 REB, 3 AST
• Jayson Tatum, Celtics: 32 PTS, 9 REB, 5 AST
• Evan Fournier, Celtics: 18 PTS, 6 REB

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Brooklyn's Big Three Leads the Attack

Harden was the leader early for the Nets, scoring the first six Brooklyn points before Irving got in on the fun. They ended the quarter having combined for 20 of Brooklyn's 31 points, with Harden leading all scorers with 11 on three-of-four shooting from the field and five makes in as many trips to line. 

As expected, their scoring power continued through to the break. Harden led all scorers with 18 points and flirted with a triple-double with nine assists and seven rebounds, and Irving was right behind him with 15. Kevin Durant had seven points and three rebounds in 18 minutes on the floor in the opening half.

The Nets pulled away from Boston early in the third, fueled by a strong showing from Durant, who doubled his point total by the midway point of the frame.

With all three of their stars involved, the Nets had an easy time eventually pulling away from a Celtics team that battled throughout. 

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Secondary Scoring Keeps C's In It

While the Nets' early scoring was led by one player in particular, the Celtics put forth a balanced effort in the first quarter. One much-appreciated surprise for the club was Romeo Langford, who made his second consecutive postseason start in place of Kemba Walker, who was out again with a knee injury.

Langford, who scored nine points in nearly 26 minutes in Boston's blowout loss in Game 4, logged five points in nine minutes on Tuesday. 

He was one of the team's leaders after 12 minutes, keeping pace with star Jayson Tatum, who scored seven. 

A 12-3 run for the Nets to end the first quarter evaporated the early signs of life from the Celtics, who went into the second frame down by seven. 

The secondary production—which was necessary in the absences of Walker and the already-accounted-for loss of Jaylen Brown—was highlighted even more in the second quarter. By the break, it was Jabari Parker who had joined Tatum as the Celtics' leading scorer, with 11 points.

He averaged 6.4 points through his 10 regular-season appearances for the Celtics.

With Tatum limited to 4-of-13 shooting in the first half, the second-string effort helped keep the Celtics in it, with Boston trailing 59-51 at the break. 

Marcus Smart got involved in the second half, ending the night with 14 points, while Langford ended the outing with a career-high three makes from deep.

Led by Tatum's 32 points, a Celtics team that was missing the rest of its top talent against one of the league's top teams put up a fight, but failed to advance past the first round for the first time since 2016. 

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What's Next? 

The Nets will turn their attention to the third-seeded Milwaukee Bucks, who swept the Miami Heat in their first-round series.