Banner Town Breakdown: Celtics Blow 24-Point Lead, Pelicans Win 120-115 in OT
Creator: Stephen Lew | Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports | Copyright: Stephen Lew
Brandon Ingram scored 33 points and Zion Williamson shook off a rugged first half to score 28 points as the New Orleans Pelicans overcame the largest deficit in franchise history to beat the Boston Celtics in overtime, 120-115.
Josh Hart had 17 points and 10 rebounds as the Pelicans came back after trailing 79-55 with 6:29 left in the third quarter. New Orleans outscored the Celtics 17-8 the rest of the way to end the period trailing 87-74.
Williamson then caught fire in the fourth quarter, scoring 13 points to help the Pelicans close the gap. They ended up taking the lead at 101-98 on a Nicolo Melli three-pointer with 3:39 left in the period.
Boston, who have now lost four straight road games, were led by Jayson Tatum with 32 points, although he struggled from the field (10-24). Jaylen Brown also shot poorly (7-23) for his 25 points, as did Kemba Walker (14 points on 5-21 shooting). The Celtics went 10 for 37 from behind the arc (27%).
Boston had everything going in their favor in the second quarter, showing the same offensive and defensive intensity on both ends of the floor. They outscored New Orleans 33-19 to take a 63-47 lead into the locker room. As mentioned, they were unfortunately unable to maintain this lead.
The Pelicans picked up the perimeter defensive intensity from the outset in the third quarter, as Josh Hart and Lonzo Ball harassed Celtic ball-handlers from the half-court line. Meanwhile, Williamson and Ingram got the offense cooking and it led to the Pelicans outscoring the Celtics 61-45 in the second half. This tied the game at 108 at the end of regulation. New Orleans then won the overtime period 12-7 for the final score of the game.
A frustrating loss for the C’s, who have been unable to stay consistent all season long. Their next game is in Dallas against Luka Doncic and the Mavericks. That will wake place on Tuesday at 7:30 PM EST on TNT.
