On Saturday against New Orleans, Jayson Tatum scored 23 points to lead Boston's balanced attack and end a two-game losing streak for the NBA-best Celtics.
For the Celtics, Latvian forward Kristaps Porzingis contributed with 19 points, 10 rebounds, four blocked shots, three assists, and two steals, and Jaylen Brown added 17 points.
Jrue Holiday had 13 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for Boston, which avoided its first three-game losing streak of the season after back-to-back losses to Atlanta.
“We want to be a hungry team no matter what,” Porzingis said. “We haven't done anything and losing back-to-back games to Atlanta is not in our DNA. It just didn't sit well with us. So we came here tonight and got the W.”
The Celtics won the Eastern Conference, improved to a record of 58 wins and 16 losses, and moved closer to securing home court advantage throughout the NBA playoffs.
New Orleans, fifth in the Western Conference, lost 45-29, falling a half-game behind Dallas and two games behind Phoenix in the battle for the final two spots in the Western playoffs.
“I knew I wasn't going to be on cruise control,” Porzingis said. “These teams have a hungry spirit. They need wins. At this point in the season, we may not need wins as much, but we still come here and compete at a high level every night. I want to.”
Porzingis was pleased with the fact that he made just 6-of-14 shots from the floor and 1-of-6 from 3-point range, but was pleased with his all-around effort.
“Even if things don't go perfectly, there are a lot of ways to influence the game,” Porzingis said. “That's what I did tonight. I stepped it up another notch. That's what we need for the rest of this regular season and even more in the postseason.”
Boston started the third quarter on a 15-7 run and opened up a 74-64 advantage to lead 83-68 entering the fourth, and the Celtics held the Pelicans at bay in the final minutes.
“I went up another gear and the game just turned around,” Porzingis said.
Derrick White, who scored 15 points, sank a 3-pointer at the buzzer in the second quarter to end an 8-1 Celtics lead, giving Boston a 59-57 lead at halftime.
For Boston, Tatum scored 13 points in the first half, while Brown and Porzingis each had 11 points.
Zion Williamson led New Orleans with a game-high 25 points, 12 points and nine rebounds in the first quarter, and CJ McCollum added 24 points for the Pelicans.
– An important night for Giannis –
Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo added 36 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and a blocked shot to lead the Bucks to a 122-113 victory in Atlanta.
The Bucks ended the Hawks' winning streak with four wins, including two wins over the Celtics, and improved to 47-27, extending their lead over second-place Cleveland in the East to two games.
Led by Bogdan Bogdanovic's game-high 38 points, Atlanta fell to 34-40, clinging to the final play-in spot for 10th place in the East and one game behind Chicago.
Orlando's Wendell Carter had 15 points and 13 rebounds on a night in which seven Magic players scored 15 points or more in double figures in a 118-88 home win over Memphis.
Orlando has improved to 43 wins and 31 losses, 1.5 games behind New York in fourth place in the East Division.
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