For a moment there, it appeared the Celtics were at risk of a season-worst three-game losing streak, but a switch flipped in the second half and Boston battle back for a 104-92 win in New Orleans.
They trailed the Pelicans by double-digits early on and by 9 at the end of the first quarter. But, a strong close to the second quarter – capped off by a buzzer-beating three-pointing by Derrick White – propelled the Celtics to a 59-57 halftime lead – their first of the game.
They’d never trail again.
In the third quarter, the Celtics turned on their defensive pressure, holding the Pelicans to just 17% shooting in the period – converted on just 4 of 23 field goals for 11 points. New Orleans was held scoreless for the final 4:33 seconds of the third, and in turn, a 2-point halftime lead became a 15-point advantage heading into the final period.
In the fourth, Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard each scored their first points of the ball game to help extend a Celtics lead to 20, and while the Pelicans made a couple of runs in the fourth, they could never cut the deficit to single digits.
All five Celtics starters scored at least 13 points, with Jayson Tatum leading the way with 23 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists.
That’s a big three for Jayson Tatum to end an 8-0 Pelicans run. Totally in rhythm and he continues his hot shooting tonight. pic.twitter.com/6haL6tdNjg
— Noa Dalzell (@NoaDalzellNBA) March 30, 2024
Kristaps Porzingis struggled from beyond the arc (1-6 on threes), but finished with 19 points, and 10 rebounds. He played a huge part of the Celtics’ defensive lockdown in the third and totaled 4 blocks on the night.
“We just knew we couldn’t be in cruise control,” Porzingis told NBC Sport Boston’s Abby Chin after the game. “These teams are hungry. They need these wins. Maybe we at this point in the season don’t need them as much, but still, we want to come out there and compete at a high level every night. Once we hit another gear, the game just flipped.”
Jaylen Brown and Jrue Holiday each flirted with triple-doubles — JB finished with 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, while Holiday finished with 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 rebounds. Holiday, the team’s best three-point shooter this season, also hit 3 of 6 three-pointers in his second game back from a five-game absence. They also shared the tall task of guarding Zion, with Jaylen Brown shouldering the majority of the responsibility.
“I thought Jaylen did a tremendous job of just making it difficult for him [Williamson],” Joe Mazzulla said postgame.
For the Pelicans, Zion Williamson and CJ McCollum each exploded for 12 points in the first quarter, but were relatively contained the rest of the way. Zion finished with 25, but struggled from the free-throw line (7-14 FT), while McCollum had 24 points.
With the win, the Celtics snap a two-game losing streak, both suffered at the hands of the Hawks in Atlanta, and improve to 58-17 on the season.
“Back to back losses to Atlanta is not our DNA,” Porzingis said. “It just didn’t sit right with us.”
Next up, the Celtics will close a six-game road-trip in Charlotte on Monday night against the Hornets.
