Game ID: 22300659
New Orleans Pelicans @ Boston Celtics
Monday, January 29, 2024 at 7:30 PM ET
TD Garden, Boston, MA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
BOS 25 25 31 37 118NOP 36 24 27 25 112
BOS vs NOP ScoutingBOS vs NOP Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
BOS availability going into 1/21 · 1 day's restBACK Queta back 1/11 after 3, 12 min since (111% of 11)
BOS availability going into 1/22 · back-to-backBACK Queta back 1/17 after 2, 8 min since (69% of 11)
BOS availability going into 1/25 · 2 days' restBACK Queta back 1/17 after 2, 8 min since (69% of 11)
BOS availability going into 1/27 · 1 day's restBACK Queta back 1/17 after 2, 7 min since (59% of 11)
NEW Kornet 15 to 20 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's rest
full strength
BOS availability going into 1/30 · back-to-backOUT Porziņģis missed 2 since 1/27, returns tonight: 31 min (108% of 29)
BOS availability going into 2/01 · 1 day's restOUT Kornet missed 2 since 1/29, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 1/30 after 2, 31 min since (108% of 29)
BOS availability going into 2/04 · 2 days' restOUT Kornet missed 3 since 1/29, returns tonight: 15 min (101% of 15)
BACK Porziņģis back 1/30 after 2, 30 min since (105% of 29)
BOS availability going into 2/07 · 2 days' restBACK Porziņģis back 1/30 after 2, 30 min since (102% of 29)
BACK Kornet back 2/04 after 3, 15 min since (101% of 15)
NOP availability going into 1/19 · 1 day's restOUT Ryan missed 29 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK Alvarado back 1/12 after 2, 15 min since (83% of 18)
NOP availability going into 1/23 · 3 days' restOUT Ryan missed 30 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK Alvarado back 1/12 after 2, 13 min since (72% of 18)
NOP availability going into 1/26 · 2 days' restOUT Ryan missed 31 since 11/20, out tonight
NEW Hawkins 17 to 23 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 1/27 · back-to-backOUT Ryan missed 32 since 11/20, out tonight
NOP availability going into 1/29 · 1 day's restOUT Ryan missed 33 since 11/20, out tonight
NOP availability going into 1/31 · 1 day's restOUT Ryan missed 34 since 11/20, out tonight
NOP availability going into 2/02 · 1 day's restOUT Ryan missed 35 since 11/20, out tonight
NOP availability going into 2/05 · 2 days' restOUT Jones missed 2 since 1/31, returns tonight: 22 min (73% of 31)
OUT Ryan missed 36 since 11/20, out tonight
NOP availability going into 2/07 · 1 day's restOUT Ryan missed 37 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK Jones back 2/05 after 2, 22 min since (73% of 31)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 109, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Tatum at 25 and Porziņģis at 24 a game. One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 121, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ingram at 20 and Williamson at 19 a game. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 109 a night to New Orleans's 121 and the turnovers, New Orleans giving it away 13 times a game to Boston's 9. Call it Boston 119, New Orleans 112.
1/21 @ HOU 116-107 — BOS notes
BOS won 116-107. BOS shot 44% (43 of 98) to HOU's 44%, 17 of 47 from three. Porziņģis led with 32 (11 of 21, 6 of 11 from three); White added 21, Tatum 18. The hinge was Q1, 35-25: from level to 10 ahead, and the lead reached 17. Porziņģis was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
1/22 @ DAL 119-110 — BOS notes
BOS won 119-110. BOS shot 47% (41 of 88) to DAL's 44%, 15 of 46 from three, and went to the line 30 times to DAL's 14 — 22 points from the stripe to their 10. Tatum led with 39 (11 of 21, 2 of 8 from three, 15 of 19 at the line); Brown added 34, Holiday 17. The hinge was Q2, 41-33: BOS came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 6, and the lead reached 16. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
1/25 @ MIA 143-110 — BOS notes
BOS won 143-110. BOS shot 64% (51 of 80) to MIA's 45%, 22 of 40 from three, and went to the line 20 times to MIA's 13 — 19 points from the stripe to their 10. BOS turned it over 11 times to MIA's 4. The glass went 47-31 for them. Tatum led with 26 (7 of 15, 3 of 7 from three, 9 of 10 at the line); Porziņģis added 19, Brown 18. The hinge was Q1, 42-29: from level to 13 ahead, and the lead reached 34. Porziņģis was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
1/27 vs LAC 96-115 — BOS notes
BOS lost 96-115. BOS shot 36% (36 of 100) to LAC's 44%, 10 of 40 from three. Tatum led with 21 (8 of 18, 2 of 4 from three); Pritchard added 12, Kornet 11. Q4 was theirs, 36-24, the deficit cut from 31 to 19, but the other 3 periods went 91-60 against them. Tatum's -32 in 30 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/29 vs NOP 118-112 — BOS notes
BOS won 118-112. BOS shot 51% (43 of 85) to NOP's 51%, 17 of 46 from three, and went to the line 20 times to NOP's 13 — 15 points from the stripe to their 10. Tatum led with 28 (10 of 18, 2 of 8 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Brown added 22, Holiday 20. The hinge was Q4, 37-25: BOS came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 6. BOS trailed 50-60 at the half and won the second half 68-52. Horford was the night's best plus/minus at +12.
1/30 vs IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 111, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 21 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and Brown at 19 a game. Without Porziņģis (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Indiana comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 119, shooting 51 percent and 37 from three, 19 free throws a game; Siakam at 21 and Nembhard at 16 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Haliburton (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 111 a night to Indiana's 119. Call it Boston 121, Indiana 116.
2/01 vs LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 114, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 22 free throws a game; Tatum at 29 and Brown at 21 a game. One day's rest. The Lakers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 129 a night and allowing 135, shooting 52 percent and 41 from three, 27 free throws a game; James at 26 and Davis at 25 a game. They have lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Reddish (4 straight), Vincent (21 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 114 a night to the Lakers' 135 and the turnovers, the Lakers giving it away 14 times a game to Boston's 10. Call it Boston 125, the Lakers 116.
2/04 vs MEM — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 115, shooting 49 percent and 39 from three, 17 free throws a game; Tatum at 26 and Porziņģis at 18 a game. 2 days' rest. Memphis comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 111, shooting 42 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Jackson Jr. at 26 and Williams Jr. at 16 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Bane (11 straight), LaRavia (10 straight), Williams (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-0 a night and Memphis minus-5 and the arc, Boston at 39 percent from three to Memphis's 34. Call it Boston 117, Memphis 107, Boston by 10.
2/07 vs ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 111, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 17 free throws a game; Tatum at 27 and Porziņģis at 20 a game. 2 days' rest. Atlanta comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 136 a night and allowing 130, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 25 free throws a game; Young at 30 and Murray at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Krejčí (22 straight). One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 111 a night to Atlanta's 130 and the line, where Atlanta takes 25 free throws a game to Boston's 17. Call it Boston 124, Atlanta 118.
1/19 vs PHX 109-123 — NOP notes
NOP lost 109-123. NOP shot 44% (41 of 93) to PHX's 49%, 10 of 42 from three. Williamson led with 24 (11 of 17); Ingram added 17, Valančiūnas 16. Q4 was theirs, 29-23, the deficit cut from 20 to 14, but the other 3 periods went 100-80 against them. Williamson's -23 in 33 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/23 vs UTA 153-124 — NOP notes
NOP won 153-124. NOP shot 58% (60 of 104) to UTA's 47%, 23 of 46 from three, and got to the line 15 times to UTA's 32. The glass went 57-38 for them. McCollum led with 33 (11 of 17, 9 of 13 from three); Jones added 22, Ingram 18. The hinge was Q2, 43-29: a lead of 4 became 18, and the lead reached 35. Murphy III was the night's best plus/minus at +23.
1/26 vs OKC 83-107 — NOP notes
NOP lost 83-107. NOP shot 39% (32 of 82) to OKC's 48%, 9 of 36 from three. NOP turned it over 20 times to OKC's 11, and OKC turned those into 11 steals. Jones led with 14 (6 of 12, 2 of 7 from three); Valančiūnas added 14, McCollum 12. Q1 was theirs, 24-22, but the other 3 periods went 85-59 against them. McCollum's -20 in 35 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/27 @ MIL 117-141 — NOP notes
NOP lost 117-141. NOP shot 47% (40 of 85) to MIL's 56%, 9 of 23 from three, and went to the line 36 times to MIL's 25 — 28 points from the stripe to their 19. NOP turned it over 14 times to MIL's 9, and MIL turned those into 12 steals. Ingram led with 26 (9 of 18, 6 of 8 at the line); Williamson added 23, Valančiūnas 13. Q4 was theirs, 30-29, the deficit cut from 25 to 24, but the other 3 periods went 112-87 against them. McCollum's -30 in 23 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/29 @ BOS 112-118 — NOP notes
NOP lost 112-118. NOP shot 51% (46 of 91) to BOS's 51%, 10 of 35 from three, and got to the line 13 times to BOS's 20. Ingram led with 28 (12 of 24, 2 of 8 from three); Williamson added 26, McCollum 16. Q1 was theirs, 36-25, but the other 3 periods went 93-76 against them. They led by as many as 17. Nance Jr.'s -12 in 20 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/31 @ HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 32 from three, 25 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 27 and Sengun at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 123, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 20 free throws a game; Williamson at 22 and Ingram at 20 a game. That is 3 straight losses. One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-8 a night and New Orleans plus-1 and the defense, Houston allowing 116 a night to New Orleans's 123. Call it Houston 119, New Orleans 114.
2/02 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 116, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 21 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 23 and Vassell at 22 a game. Without Collins (3 straight). One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 118, shooting 49 percent and 36 from three, 20 free throws a game; Williamson at 22 and Ingram at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest.
So: New Orleans wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where New Orleans has been plus-8 a night and San Antonio plus-1. Call it New Orleans 116, San Antonio 115, San Antonio keeping it close.
2/05 vs TOR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 116, shooting 47 percent and 30 from three, 22 free throws a game; Williamson at 27 and Ingram at 22 a game. Without Jones (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Toronto comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 126, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 23 free throws a game; Barnes at 21 and Trent Jr. at 16 a game. Without Freeman-Liberty (4 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New Orleans wins, and the game turns on the arc, Toronto at 38 percent from three to New Orleans's 30 and the defense, New Orleans allowing 116 a night to Toronto's 126. Call it New Orleans 119, Toronto 113.
2/07 @ LAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Clippers come in 4-1 over their last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 118, shooting 51 percent and 44 from three, 24 free throws a game; Leonard at 31 and Harden at 18 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Tucker (33 straight). One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 114, shooting 49 percent and 34 from three, 21 free throws a game; Ingram at 28 and Williamson at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 4 a night. One day's rest.
So: The Clippers win, and the game turns on the arc, the Clippers at 44 percent from three to New Orleans's 34 and the glass, where New Orleans has been plus-4 a night and the Clippers minus-1. Call it the Clippers 119, New Orleans 115, New Orleans keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
NOPBI B. Ingram
CM C. McCollum
DD D. Daniels
HJ H. Jones
JH J. Hawkins
JV J. Valančiūnas
LN L. Nance Jr.
NM N. Marshall
TM T. Murphy III
ZW Z. Williamson
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JH J. Holiday
JT J. Tatum
NQ N. Queta
OB O. Brissett
PP P. Pritchard
SH S. Hauser
NOP/BOS the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Tatum leads rally in 4th, Celtics snap 2-game home skid with 118-112 win over Pelicans
BOSTON -- — The Celtics began the season unbeatable in TD Garden.
After back-to-back setbacks at home, they reminded New Orleans why they've been so tough to beat in their own building.
Jayson Tatum scored 12 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter and Boston rallied past the Pelicans 118-112 on Monday night.
The victory snapped a two-game skid at home for Boston, which opened 20-0 at TD Garden.
Jaylen Brown added 22 points and 11 rebounds. Jrue Holiday had 20 points and Derrick White finished with 17.
Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said he hopes that narrowly avoiding a third consecutive home loss will help rid the East’s top team of its sense of “entitlement” to win games.
“We can’t lose sight of the fact that we have to earn a win every night,” Mazzulla said.
Brown said he feels the team is learning from its shortcomings.
“It's a full season. It's a full body of work you have to account for night in and night out," Brown said. “We don't really make no excuses. But it's tough. You've got to come out and be the best version of yourself every single night.”
The Pelicans led by 17 in the first half but were outscored 68-52 over the final two quarters to drop their third straight game.
Brandon Ingram led New Orleans with 28 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Zion Williamson finished with 26 points.
The Pelicans outscored the Celtics 58-44 in the paint but committed six of their 12 turnovers in the fourth quarter.
“We know our blind spots. We know that the last five minutes of a game we have to execute better and get quality looks,” Pelicans coach Willie Green said. “We had a few turnovers down the stretch. That's where we have to grow.”
In his second game back since sitting out with a bruised bone in his left foot, Williamson’s scoring and ability to slice through Boston’s interior defense helped New Orleans stay in front for most of the night.
The Celtics tightened things up defensively in the fourth quarter, turning back-to-back stops into a floating jumper and 3-pointer by White to cap a 13-3 run that tied the game at 94 with just over six minutes to play.
Two lead changes later, another 3 by White put Boston in front 99-98. That was followed by Tatum's steal, which he punctuated with a two-handed dunk.
A free throw by Tatum and layup by White pushed the lead to 104-99.
Boston got it up to 109-103 when Tatum came up with another steal. He pushed the ball up the floor, found a lane and slid in for another dunk with 1:42 remaining.
Williamson said physically he feels he's in a good spot at this point in the season.
“I'm just stacking my days,” he said. “It's a slow grind. The team has been a big help with that. When the end of the season gets here, I feel like I'm going to be in an amazing spot for us to really do some real damage in the playoffs.”
A slow start doomed Boston during its 19-point loss to the Clippers on Saturday. The Celtics again came out sluggish against the Pelicans, quickly falling behind by 14 in the opening quarter.
New Orleans extended its lead to 17 in the second before a late Boston spurt cut it to 60-50 at halftime.
The Celtics needed less than three minutes of the third quarter to trim the deficit to two. Williamson responded by scoring the Pelicans’ next nine points over the next two-plus minutes to help keep New Orleans in front.
Boston surged again with a 9-2 run, capped by Sam Hauser 's 26-footer to give the Celtics their first lead since early in the first quarter.
But the Pelicans settled down and took an 87-81 edge into the final period.