Pelicans (2-9), Celtics (5-5)
New Orleans won the type of game it hadn’t been able to pull out over the first 10 outings of the season, finally prevailing in a tight contest Monday vs. Boston. The Pelicans had dropped a handful of previous games in which they could’ve easily won – including two overtime defeats – but this time point guard Tim Frazier sank one of two free throws with 2 seconds remaining in regulation for the deciding point. New Orleans led by as many as 14 points in the second half, but Boston rallied to create a tension-filled final few minutes.
With the game tied at 105 and time ticking down, Frazier dribbled quickly across the halfcourt line and faked a shot, managing to draw a foul on an off-balance Kelly Olynyk, who bit on the veteran move and made contact just inside the three-point line. Frazier also made a huge defensive play moments earlier, stealing a Boston inbound pass with 14 seconds left.
IT WAS OVER WHEN…
With no timeouts remaining and only one-tenth of a second on the clock, Boston tossed in an inbound pass from the halfcourt stripe that hit the rim (if it had gone in, it wouldn’t have counted). The pass deflected off the basket and went to Celtics guard Marcus Smart, who was surrounded by Pelicans defenders and wasn’t legally able to do anything other than tip the ball anyway at 0:00.1. Smart grabbed the rebound and directed it to the basket, to no avail.
PELICANS PLAYER OF THE GAME
Langston Galloway had struggled early in the season to locate his shooting touch and contribute consistently, but Monday he got on a roll, posting 21 points as part of an invaluable night from the bench. The Baton Rouge native shot 8/14 from the field, highlighted by sinking three of his five attempts from beyond the arc. Twelve of Galloway’s points came during the second quarter, when NOLA held a 29-25 edge.
PELICANS UNSUNG CONTRIBUTOR
Terrence Jones provided one of his best games as a Pelican, delivering a double-double that consisted of 15 points and 10 rebounds, to go with two blocks. Jones also sparked New Orleans’ transition game, often leading fast-break opportunities with his above-average ballhandling ability for a big. The Pelicans got a few more easy hoops than usual, scoring 20 fast-break points.
QUOTES TO NOTE
“That was a great job, a high basketball IQ to draw that foul on (Olynyk). That was a big play. He’s been playing big this whole season for us.” – Anthony Davis (25 points, 16 rebounds, four blocks, two steals) on Frazier’s savvy play that resulted in the game-winning free throw
“Everybody played well, everybody stepped up. Langston made some huge shots. Solomon (Hill) played well. Terrence (Jones) played well. Tim. Buddy (Hield). We’re going to need that spread offense from everybody.” – Davis on getting multiple contributions
“I just read Marcus (Smart’s) eyes. He threw it and I was able to jump in front of it.” – Frazier on the steal he made of a critical Boston inbound pass
“Our group, we just wanted to show that we can be one of those groups that come off the bench and make a difference.” – Galloway on the performance of the bench, which gave the Pelicans a major boost energy-wise and production-wise
BY THE NUMBERS
57-20: New Orleans bench scoring advantage. In addition to Galloway’s 21 and Jones’ 15, Hill had nine and Archie Goodwin tallied eight, including 6/6 foul shooting.
1-4: Pelicans record in games decided by five points or less or in overtime. They lost consecutive OT games to Memphis and Phoenix last week.
40.0: Boston shooting percentage from the field, including just 29.3 percent from three-point range. The Celtics launched 41 attempts from the arc but only made 12, with starting bigs Olynyk and Amir Johnson combining to shoot 2/10.