Everything you need to know about the Hornets beating the Celtics 117-112 in BSJ Quickie Form
Box Score
HEADLINES
Kemba takes over the fourth quarter: Kemba Walker added his name to the long list of standout guard performances against the Celtics, posting 21 of his 43 points in the fourth quarter to rally the hosts from a 10-point deficit and run away with the win. Walker was coming off a 60-point performance in a loss to the Sixers on Saturday night and he maintained that level of scoring despite facing off with Marcus Smart for much of the evening. The point guard was able to lose Smart on picks and the help defense did not step up enough to prevent him from going a sensational 7-of-13 from 3-point range. Jeremy Lamb added 18 points for the Hornets, who pulled themselves up to the .500 mark in the win. Kyrie Irving (27 points, 11 assists, 5 rebounds) was terrific yet again but he went cold down the stretch of this one, failing in his quest to outduel Walker and cover up for a Celtics’ defense that allowed 63 second-half points.
A starting switch: Brad Stevens elected to move Gordon Hayward to the bench for the first time all season in this one with Aron Baynes getting the nod at the center spot. The head coach said the move was largely predicated on getting Hayward playing with units that he was more comfortable working with and acknowledged that the switch was “not set in stone.” Stevens did not stick with it long as Baynes played just seven minutes on the night against a smaller Hornets lineup. Hayward played 31 minutes off the bench with a subpar performance (4 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists) but the bench unit put together some strong minutes with him leading the charge.
TURNING POINT
The Celtics led by 10 points with just over 10 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter before the Hornets erupted for an 11-0 run, which came while Irving spent some time on the bench. Walker scored seven straight points during the outburst to erase the double-digit deficit and gave Charlotte the offensive momentum down the stretch. They scored 29 points in the final 10 minutes of the win.
TWO UP
Kyrie Irving: His shot selection during crunch time featured a little too much hero ball, but his all-around offensive game was terrific yet again, posting a double-double for the second time in the last three games. He matched his season-high with 11 assists and has now scored 20 or more points in 10 of his last 12 games. He’s shooting over 55 percent from the field in the month of November.
Terry Rozier:
A much-needed performance for the reserve guard who found his touch from beyond the arc and did a little bit of everything in 19 minutes (8 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists). He balanced his attacking mentality with making the right pass and that produced some stellar offense when he was on the floor (plus-6). Smart managed to hog the minutes away from him late though for defensive purposes on Walker.
TWO DOWN
Al Horford’s defense:
The 32-year-old has looked a step slow on defense at times and that trend continued tonight against Walker. The point guard deserves credit for the phenomenal run he’s on but Horford was late contesting a lot of shots on the perimeter out of the pick-and-roll. Those are the looks that hurt the most and the C’s did not do well taking those away tonight. Horford needs to improve in this department or else the C’s will remain vulnerable against speedy guards.
Brad Stevens:
He finally shook up the starting five but this wasn’t a well-managed game by the head coach. Jaylen Brown had one of his better performances in weeks but only played for 19 minutes, including very little of the second half. Walker was getting whatever he wanted against the C’s defense and Stevens did not throw doubles at him to get the ball out of his hands. Hayward playing in this game late was an iffy decision given his offensive night (1-of-6) as well. Stevens has tough choices to make every night, but they didn’t work out well this evening.
TOP PLAY
TWO TAKES B-ROBB WILL PROBABLY REGRET LATER
This loss wasn’t as bad as it looked:
The Hornets are a much better team than their record indicates. Walker is playing the best basketball of his life and he’s got a solid supporting cast around him for a change. Their expected win-loss total (based on their season stats) is a 12-4 team but bad luck in close games have dropped them down to .500. The Celtics did a lot of good things tonight, although most of them came on the offensive end. They tied their season-high with 31 assists, they attacked the basket effectively more than anytime all season (until crunch time) and role guys like Brown and Rozier looked solid again. In my book, this was one of the more encouraging losses of the year, even though the late-game collapse makes it look like another stinker.
Jaylen Brown deserved to play more tonight:
I was hard on the shooting guard in today’s column but he’s still an important part to this team. However, you could see signs that Stevens has lost faith in him a little bit by going with Hayward over him during crunch time tonight and for a huge chunk of the game overall (Hayward played 31 minutes to Brown’s 19). Brown didn’t do anything great in this game but he was attacking the rim with force on a couple of occasions and looked more in sync offensively than Hayward, something that came back to bite Boston late with a key Hayward miss in the final two minutes. Stevens doesn’t have easy choices on a nightly basis given how this team is playing right now but this was one he’d probably like to have back.
