Everything you need to know about the Celtics beating the Hornets 126-94 with BSJ insight and analysis
Box Score
HEADLINES
Celtics explode in second half on way to blowout win: A back-and-forth shootout in the first half came to a halt quickly after intermission as the Celtics erupted with arguably one of their best halves of basketball all season. The hosts pushed a four-point halftime lead all the way up to 35 midway through the fourth quarter behind terrific shooting, balanced scoring and disruptive defense against a Hornets team that didn’t what hit them. Terry Rozier (17 points, season-high 10 assists) filled in admirably for an injured Kyrie Irving (sore hip) while Jaylen Brown (team-high 24 points, season-high 10 rebounds) and Jayson Tatum (20 points) led six different Celtics that scored in double figures.
Boston has now won 12 of its last 13 games at home with the victory and pulled within one game of the No. 4 spot in the East.
A banner day for the C’s youth in face of trade rumors: Amid endless trade speculation over the past couple of days, the Celtics young guard played with a purpose on Wednesday night with their All-Star guard watching on the sidelines. Tatum set the tone with a 13-point first quarter while Brown’s hot run of offense off the bench continues to provide a spark to this team on a regular basis for the past month. Rozier has had his struggles of late as well, but this was arguably the best all-around performance of his season (17 points, 10 assists, five rebounds, three steals) as he showed the versatility of his skillset. Nights like these with everyone rolling on all cylinders have been hard to come by this year, but served as a timely reminder to the Pelicans what
TURNING POINT
The Celtics came out with a greater sense of urgency after taking a four-point lead into halftime, breaking out with a 20-3 run midway through the third quarter behind some offense from Jaylen Brown, Terry Rozier (10 points in third quarter) and some far improved defense at the point of attack to push the lead up to 23.
TWO UP
Tatum: The 20-year-old responded to a couple days of trade rumors with one of his best quarters of the season to start the game. He put up 13 points in the opening frame on 6-of-8 shooting, while doing all of his damage from inside the arc. He hit a couple midrange pullups, but he also used some nice misdirection plays and cuts to get easy points, working the two-man game effectively with Al Horford on several occasions.
Brown: The swingman continues to be on an absolute roll over the past few games. He matched Tatum by putting up a team-high 15 points in the first half, with the only blemishes coming from beyond the arc (1-of-4 from deep). He made all six of his baskets from inside the arc, punishing the Hornets in the post and with some strong takes in transition.
TWO DOWN
Defending Kemba Walker: The Celtics don’t have anyone who can stick with the All-Star point guard consistently, which goes for most teams in the league, to be honest. Walker diced the Celtics up in the pick-and-roll in the first half for 13 points on his way to a team-high 21 points. Brad Stevens is going to have to get creative to try to contain Walker if these two teams see each other in a first-round series.
Marcus Smart’s shooting: It was a strong all-around performance for the guard, but his improved jump shot had an off night. He missed six of his seven shots, including three in the first three minutes of the game.
TOP PLAY
Brown goes to work! ? pic.twitter.com/fSDlyKGksI
— Boston Celtics (@celtics) January 31, 2019