Duke basketball standout continues to break franchise records

A former Duke basketball standout continues to break franchise records. 

Former Duke basketball star Jayson Tatum continues to shatter franchise records for the Boston Celtics (27-26).

On Friday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves (13-40), the former Blue Devil became the youngest player in Celtics history to score 50 points or more in a game.

Tatum exploded for 53 points in a 145-136 victory over the T-Wolves as his All-Star season continues for the struggling Celtics.

However, Boston appears to have turned a corner in its surprising season as the team continues to get healthy, having won four of its last five games.

In addition to his season-high in points, Tatum also notched 10 rebounds, four assists, and one block on 16-of-25 shooting from the field, 6-of-10 from three-point range, and 15-of-16 from the free throw line.

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The two-time All-Star had 35 points across the second half and overtime in the victory.

Friday night marked the second straight double-double for Tatum as he posted 25 points and 10 rebounds in a 101-99 victory over the New York Knicks (26-27) on Wednesday night.

Jayson Tatum’s previous season-high was 40 points in a victory over the Toronto Raptors on January 4 while his previous career-high was 41 points set twice in the 2019-20 season.

Duke basketball star looking to get Boston Celtics in better playoff position

Through 47 games with the Celtics this season, Tatum is averaging 25.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 45.7-percent from the floor and 38.2-percent from three-point range.

However, the Celtics are sitting as the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference, nine games behind the Philadelphia 76ers (36-17) and Brooklyn Nets (36-17) for the top spot in the conference.

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The top six seeds in each conference receive an automatic place in the First Round of the NBA Playoffs while the No. 7, No. 8, No. 9, and No. 10 seeds will play in a Play-In Tournament.

Jayson Tatum is listed as questionable for the Boston Celtics’ next game against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday, April 11 at 3:00pm EST (NBATV).