Final: Celtics 126, Hornets 94 --C's pull away in third quarter in 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.

First Half Notes

• Tough shooting night for Marcus Smart to start, who miss his first three shots.


• C’s really taking advantage of Bismack Biyombo early on in the pick-and-roll. They honestly should probably be going to it on almost every possession given his inability to stick with Horford and quicker players.


• Kemba Walker with some easy early looks for himself and others thanks to his speed advantages after getting mismatches. Tatum has been a target for the Hornets D.


• Lots of early jumpers for both teams with no free throws in opening six minutes and just one foul called between both sides.


• A couple nice takes to the rim by Tatum off of head fakes. He posted 11 of Boston’s first 22 points on 5-of-6 shooting. One of his best quarters in weeks.


• 12 assists on 15 made field goals for Celtics in the first quarter.


• A couple needed buckets for Hayward in his first stint around the basket, while Jaylen Brown continues to play great.


• Jaylen Brown continues to be on an absolute roll inside the arc, making his first six field goals from 2-point range on the way to a game-high 15 points in the first half.


• Hornets got hot with a 11-0 run at the tail end of the first quarter as Malik Monk, Kemba Walker and Marvin Williams all got hot from the outside.


• Terry Rozier nails a 3 before the buzzer to push the lead out to four before halftime, giving C’s a bit of a cushion.


• Soft defense from both sides in the first half as each team shoots over 55 percent. Only two combined free throws as well.

• Kyrie Irving will miss his second straight game with a sore hip. He suffered the injury during Saturday's loss against the Warriors. The Celtics are 23-3 without him at the TD Garden over the past two seasons.


• The Hornets have won five of their last seven games thanks to some improved play on the defensive end. They are now starting big man Bismack Biyombo with Cody Zeller sidelined for several weeks due to injury.


• Jaylen Brown has been on a tear of late coming off the Celtics bench. He's averaging 18 points per game on 56 percent shooting over his last three contests.


• The Celtics have won 11 of their last 12 games at the TD Garden.