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Leigh Griffiths scored a hat-trick as Celtic swept Inverness aside to equal their highest league win of the season.

The striker volleyed in a great delivery from Emilio Izaguirre for the opener and then delivered a corner for Charlie Mulgrew to flick home.

Griffiths wasted a couple of chances early in the second half but soon had the net bulging with a fierce shot.

A Kris Commons strike squirmed under Dean Brill before the keeper was beaten by another fine finish from Griffiths.

The victory was an emphatic riposte to those questioning Celtic's motivation following the midweek loss of their unbeaten Premiership run.

Visiting manager John Hughes said pre-match that his players wanted to have a go at the champions but they were two goals down before the first quarter of the game had elapsed.

Griffiths struck on 11 minutes, steering in an Izaguirre cross from the left past Brill from six yards. The keeper got a touch but couldn't stop the ball hitting the net.

Mulgrew then added Celtic's second with a neat near post flick from an awkward Griffiths corner.

Inverness squandered a great chance to reduce the deficit when skipper Richie Foran scooped over from 14 yards following an enterprising run and cross from full-back Grame Shinnie.

Celtic threatened again, with Brill stopping a shot from Anthony Stokes and Gary Warren needed to make a good blocking tackle on Griffiths has he sped towards goal.

The busy Griffiths fired into the side-netting from sixteen yards after a neat Nir Biton pass five minutes into the second half and Inverness replied with a Billy McKay shot easily saved by Fraser Forster.

Griffiths fired Celtic further ahead on 57 minutes, nipping between two defenders on the left side of the box and thrashing a wicked shot in from sixteen yards.

McKay then forced a point blank save from Forster as Inverness tried to rally, the striker slipping as he looked certain to score.

Shortly afterwards some intricate interplay between Stokes and Griffiths saw the latter fire high over the bar as Celtic maintained their high-tempo attacking game.

A James Forrest effort then clipped the bar and Brill then had to dive to his left to beat away another shot from the Scotland winger, who was deployed in a central role behind the strikers.

Substitute Kris Commons cracked in the fourth goal with a twenty five yard effort which slipped under keeper Brill and, with Celtic in rampant form, Griffiths added the fifth five minutes from time - coolly slotting past Brill from fourteen yards.