Jayson Tatum scores 36, Celtics roll past Thunder

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Jayson Tatum scored 36 points and the Boston Celtics beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 132-123 on Monday night.

Tatum has scored 30-or-more points in his last three games, extending the streak on 11-of-19 shooting against Oklahoma City. Jaylen Brown added 25 points and Grant Williams scored 20.

"We came out with the right mindset offensively," Boston coach Ime Udoka said. "Obviously, the second half was a little bit different. But we talked about going 4-0, finishing the (road) trip on the right foot and did that ultimately."

Tre Mann set a Thunder franchise rookie scoring record with 35 points on 13-of-21 shooting and 7-of-12 sniping from 3-point range.

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Boston Celtics head coach Ime Udoka, left, talks with forward Jayson Tatum, right, in the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Monday, March 21, 2022, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Kyle Phillips)

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, back in the Thunder lineup after being held out of Sunday’s loss to Orlando, scored 31 points.

"I thought we hung in there," Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said. "We took a pretty hard punch early and it took us a minute to stabilize the game. And even then, it was hard for us to get close."

Boston opened the first quarter with a 13-0 run, creating a cushion it held most of the night.

The Celtics, who boasted the NBA’s best defensive rating entering Monday’s contest, struggled early to contain Mann, who was 8 for 8 from the floor in the second quarter.

Boston held a 65-51 lead entering the break and scored 43 points in the third to remain in control.

The Celtics’ advantage reached 26