Celtics (12-9), Pelicans (5-16)
With a 3-on-1 fast break in their favor midway through the fourth quarter, Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday lofted an alley oop pass to Anthony Davis, a play that results in a dunk nearly every time. Except on Monday night, when New Orleans never found any rhythm in seemingly any aspect of the game. Davis couldn’t convert at the rim; Boston ended up with the ball going the other way. Three days after posting an upset win over Cleveland on Friday, the result was a one-sided New Orleans home defeat against an intense Boston team. The Celtics used big advantages in transition and shooting to break open what had been a tie game after the first quarter, eventually going up by 20-plus points.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
Boston’s Kelly Olynyk was fouled on a three-pointer, then sank all three free throws to give the Celtics a 91-73 lead with 8:51 remaining. The Celtics outscored the Pelicans in the middle quarters by a 56-42 margin, allowing them to take command.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
In his second game since a move to come off the bench, Jrue Holiday played one of his better games of the season, finishing with 14 points and six assists. Holiday logged 21 minutes while under his minute restriction of 25.
PELICANS UNSUNG CONTRIBUTOR
Backup center Alexis Ajinca was solid after coming in to replace Omer Asik early in both halves, among multiple changes New Orleans needed to make. The 7-foot-2 native of France posted 12 points and nine rebounds. Perhaps most notably in his stat line, he made six of nine shots from the floor. The Pelicans had trouble clearing 40 percent all game.
