The Boston Celtics leveraged their beefier big men and most capable scorers to deprive the Chicago Bulls of a key advantage that the Celtics used to secure their first victory in NBA Cup tournament play. Boston scored 58 points in the paint to the Bulls meager 40 in a contest that the Celtics won by 14 points. The Celtics frontline of Neemias Queta, Mitchell Robinson, and Luka Garza stepped up to help Jayson Tatum, Paul George, and Payton Pritchard choke Chicago in the paint while they thrived in the same space on the other end of the court.
"I think that just in general we’re really good at creating great advantages and getting to the paint," said Queta after Boston's 125-111 win at TD Garden on Friday (Oct. 30) night. "Once you get to the paint one
time, the second time it’s easier to get down there and so forth."
"It’s something that we emphasize and think we executed at a high level today," added the Boston big man, pointing to how it boosted the team's point differential advantageously for tournament success.
"Play until that last whistle, get some more reps out there on the court and fine-tuning some things we can get better at, I like that," said the Portuguese center.
"I’m just not a fan of point differential when it’s a situation like last year when we were just out there fouling and going to a free throw match. Other than that, I like everything that it brings."
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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Neemias Queta on how Boston Celtics dominated paint vs. Chicago Bulls in cup play
