BOSTON – The Celtics needed one last stop at the end, but they defeated the Timberwolves 107-105 on Sunday at TD Garden. Naz Reid’s three-pointer near the buzzer was late and off the goal line to end the game. The C’s ultimately won and improved to 14-3, while the Wolves fell to 8-8.

It was all Jaylen Brown from the tip as he knocked in five 3-pointers in the opening minutes. The Garden crowd was exhausted after that fast start, although it didn’t last long. The Celtics played nine minutes of the game without anyone other than Brown scoring as the offense began in the mud.

That’s where the C’s woke up. They didn’t gain much in the margins in the first quarter, but they were better in the second. At halftime, the C’s held a 55-52 lead over the Wolves in a tight game. The Celtics then threatened to blow the game open in the second half, building a 19-point lead.

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The Wolves didn’t go down without a fight, though, as they came down in a clutch game down the stretch. Anthony Edwards was a big part of that comeback as the Wolves started knocking down 3s as part of their comeback effort. The Wolves never regained the lead, but hung around all night. The Wolves eventually had one last chance to tie the game, but they were also unable to generate clean looks.

Brown had 29 points to lead the way as part of an efficient evening. Jayson Tatum added 26 points and eight rebounds. Rudy Gobert had 10 points and 20 rebounds for the Timberwolves. Edwards added 28 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

The Celtics face the Clippers at TD Garden on Monday at 7:30 PM for the second game of a back-to-back. Here are four takeaways from Boston’s win over Minnesota:

Catch fire: After putting together an impressive game against the Wizards, Brown followed that up with a fast start on Sunday. Brown hit his first five 3-pointers and immediately got the Garden crowd moving. It’s been a slow start to the season for Brown, as he’s converted just 28.4% of his 3s on a career-high 7.7 attempts per game. Brown finished 7-for-10 as he increased his percentages on Sunday.

Margin of 3 points: The Celtics hit their 3s early and often, although they were a bit cold in the second half. For the Celtics, it wasn’t just about making 3-pointers at an efficient clip – it was also about the volume of 3s they generated on a nightly basis. That seemed to be the case on Sunday, as the C’s rained down 3s while the Wolves missed a catch. But Minnesota was able to get back into the game in part thanks to hitting its 3s — the Wolves went 6-for-12 from 3 in the fourth quarter. The Celtics finished 21-for-56 (37.5%) from behind the arc, while the Wolves went 15-for-41 (36.6%). So while it was still a significant difference, the Wolves were able to close the gap in the comeback attempt.

Major rotation: C’s coach Joe Mazzulla leaned on Al Horford a little more on Sunday, knowing the big man wouldn’t play Monday because of the back-to-back. The Celtics were also short up front, with backup big Luke Kornet unavailable Sunday due to a hamstring injury. Mazzulla also rolled with Xavier Tillman as the primary backup over Neemias Queta. That was the case last time in the Wizards’ win, so it was no surprise that Tillman scored even more points. Queta got playing time to open the season but has struggled of late. Tillman finished with 14 minutes on Sunday and had three points and four rebounds in his minutes.

Long series: Historically, the Timberwolves have failed to beat the Celtics in Boston, and they will need to add another game to their losing streak. The Wolves have lost 18 straight games in Boston after Sunday’s loss, having not won on the road against the C’s since March 2005. Funnily enough, that’s actually not the longest historical losing streak against an opponent from the East. The Wolves, who lost their last game to the Raptors, have dropped 20 games in a row in Toronto dating back to January 2004. So there have been some signs of futility for the Wolves over the years.