BOSTON — Coming off one of their most lopsided defeats of the season, the Celtics capitalized on an ideal get-right opportunity Friday night.

Boston pummeled a short-handed, lottery-bound Sacramento Kings squad, 112-93, at TD Garden.

With Jaylen Brown sitting out with hamstring and knee injuries, Payton Pritchard spearheaded Boston’s offense, scoring 22 of his 29 points in the first half and adding eight assists. Neemias Queta shot 4 for 11 but totaled 10 points, 15 rebounds, three steals and one block in his return from a lingering illness.

Baylor Scheierman, making his fourth start of the season in Brown’s absence, finished with 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting (4-for-7 shooting from 3-point range) and five rebounds.

The Celtics — who lost by double digits at home Wednesday for the first time since Nov. 1, 117-106 to the Atlanta Hawks — improved to 30-18 with the win.

The Kings (12-38) were playing without three of their top players (Domantas Sabonis, Keegan Murray and Russell Westbrook) on the second night of a back-to-back. They have lost eight straight and 15 of their last 19.

Boston will host another scuffling opponent Sunday afternoon when the Milwaukee Bucks (18-28) visit Causeway Street without injured superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.

The Celtics sprinted out to an 11-1 lead, prompting Kings head coach Doug Christie to call his first timeout less than two minutes after tipoff. Queta, who returned after missing Wednesday’s game, opened the scoring with back-to-back lob finishes, then fed Pritchard for a driving layup.

Queta scored or assisted on five of Boston’s first seven made baskets during an impressive opening shift.

The first quarter was an offensive bonanza for the Celtics. They outscored the Kings 40-25 by going 5 for 10 from 3-point range — with makes by five different players — 11 for 12 in the paint and 7 for 7 inside the restricted area. Pritchard scored 11 in the period on 5-of-5 shooting, and White capped it with a buzzer-beating floater.

Sacramento responded with a 10-2 run to open the second quarter, and the Celtics’ perimeter shooting efficiency dipped for a spell. But they made up for it with strong offensive rebounding, particularly by backup big man Luka Garza. Garza grabbed three offensive boards and scored off all three as part of a nine-point first half. Hugo Gonzalez also corralled a loose ball to set up a second-chance 3-pointer by Pritchard.

It was one of four 3s Pritchard hit during a sensational first half. The Celtics guard also picked the Kings apart inside, going 9 for 11 from the field to enter halftime with 22 points and eight assists. His banked-in 11-footer made it 72-46 at the break, closing out a 25-6 Celtics run.

Team-wide, Boston shot a remarkable 85% on 2-pointers before halftime (17 for 20) and did not miss any of its attempts at the rim (11 for 11). At the other end, their defense held the Kings to just one make inside the restricted area and 33.3% shooting from 2-point range. Sacramento was even shakier from three, going 5 for 17 (29.4%) before half.

Scheierman helped Boston pad its lead in the third quarter with two 3-pointers sandwiched around a series of hustle plays. The gritty wing threw a rebound off a Kings player to give the Celtics possession, picked off a Dennis Schroder pass and gathered an offensive rebound after his own missed 3. His fourth trey of the game put Boston up 80-52 midway through the third.

Boston scored just 17 points in the third quarter and 23 in the fourth, but their lead never dropped below 16 during a largely uneventful second half.

Other observations:

— With the Celtics up big in the final minutes, coach Joe Mazzulla gave Chris Boucher his first playing time since before Thanksgiving. The veteran big man has been out of the rotation since Nov. 23, remaining on the bench even in blowouts until Friday’s cameo.

Boucher closed the game with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer, which appeared to annoy Westbrook, who was in street clothes on Sacramento’s bench. The two had words after the final horn, but their conversation seemed to end amicably.

Wing Josh Minott, who’s appeared in just three games since late December, also subbed in late.

— A handful of Patriots players were in attendance ahead of their trip to Santa Clara, Calif., for Super Bowl LX. All received rousing ovations, with the loudest reserved for Pro Bowl cornerback Christian Gonzalez, whose AFC championship interception was shown on the Jumbotron. Former New England safety Patrick Chung also watched the game from courtside seats.

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