On Saturday, Jayson Tatum scored 23 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a 104-92 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans after, rebounding from back-to-back Atlanta defeats. Kristaps Porzingis had 19 points and 10 rebounds, and Jaylen Brown added 17, as the Celtics, who have the best record in the NBA at 58-16, saved their first three-game losing streak of the season.
Derrick White scored 15 points, while Jrue Holiday had 13 points, seven assists, and eight rebounds. Zion Williamson scored 25 points for New Orleans, while CJ McCollum contributed 24. Boston led 59-57 at halftime and grabbed control in the third quarter, restricting New Orleans to 11 points. The Celtics went up 79-68 on Tatum's 3-pointer with 4:12 left in the quarter and led by double digits the rest of the way, including a 22-point lead in the fourth.
Boston Celtics fight back in 2nd quarter
The Pelicans went 4 for 23 in the third quarter, with Williamson missing all five of his tries. With just 4:37 minutes left in the game, New Orleans did not score after Trey Murphy's 3-pointer, going 0 for 6 with three turnovers. Williamson and Herb Jones each had 14 points in the first half, which saw New Orleans lead by 11 after Williamson's steal and dunk began a 9-0 run.
McCollum's driving layup made it 34-23 late in the first quarter, but Boston fought back in the second, tying the game at 44 on White's tip-in of Brown's miss. White gave the Celtics their first lead with a long three as time came to an end in the first half.
The Celtics will now face the Charlotte Hornets on Monday night to wrap up their six-game road trip, the longest of the season.