Despite keeping the game absolutely neck and neck through the fourth, the Celtics out-lasted the Pelicans and won 94-107.
It’s amazing how little talent is needed when a team knows how to hustle. Fans of highly skilled professional basketball might feel luke-warm about this game, but fans of the power of the human spirit will have been throughly entertained. Kudos to both teams, they left it all on the floor.
MVP: Isaiah Thomas
Isaiah Thomas is awesome. You’ve got to love a guy who’s just barely 5’8″ dropping 32 against a team desperately trying to slow him down. He shot 10/19 from the floor, 3/6 from deep, had 4 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals, and was +22 during his time on the floor (+7 higher than anyone else on the team). Past the statistics, he willed the Celtics through the fourth quarter to victory. The Pelicans were initially down coming out of half time, and managed to fight back at the end of the third. Through the fourth, they kept it neck and neck up until the final minutes when Thomas checked in the game and ended their dreams.
LVP: Dante Cunningham
I’ve grown into a big Dante Cunningham fan, but nights like these make me wonder if it’s ever possible to play him on the offense end and even come out with a neutral result. He shot 0/6 from the floor, and got completely shut down by Celtics’ forward Jae Crowder. His defense wasn’t bad, but on offense he looked shell shocked and completely out of place. I found myself rooting for the team to put James Ennis back in the game, who we signed to a 10-day contract just last week.
X-factor: Turnovers
22 turnovers for the Pelicans compared to 9 for the Celtics. The deciding factor in the game, and the reason the Pelicans were unable to pull away, was that ugly mistakes and carelessness with the ball allowed the Celtics to keep them on a leash. The Celtics are a scrappy young team, and they sacrifice themselves for the ball and get out on the break any chance they get. With Toney Douglas and Tim Frazier as your two lead guards, it’s difficult to expect perfect ball-control. Still, it’s hard to imagine a winning team committing 13 more turnovers than their opponent and coming close to a victory.
Turning point: Third quarter run
Towards the end of the third quarter the Pelicans found themselves down by 14. Scoring 11 to close the quarter, followed by a Luke Babbitt 3 to open the 4th, they were able to outscore the Celtics 14-0 and tie the game. That miraculous stretch was enough to bring them back and turn this into a real competition, which lasted right up until the final minutes when Isaiah Thomas put the team away with his and-one drive to the basket.
Defining moment: Isaiah Thomas’ and-one
You know it! The pivotal defining moment of tonight’s game was clearly the incredible drive Isaiah Thomas made towards the rim to give the Celtics the lead. With illegal contract draped all over him, he somehow managed to create just enough space to roll the ball in. The Pelicans fought back hard until the final whistle blew, but Thomas’ shot effectively marked the beginning of the end for the Pelicans chances at a victory.
That was…another loss!
Two in a row! The Minnesota Timberwolves are rolling and grooving following their insane win over the historically elite Golden State Warriors and looking like a team who wants to compete until the final game of the year. A loss to the 76ers last night and a loss to the Celtics tonight could spell trouble for the Wolves’ lottery odds, which are only slightly better than the Pelicans. If the Pelicans could move into the top five of the draft, their chances at a top three pick rise almost 10%. No one likes losing, but when the incentives are this clear you kind of have to give in and bank on the draft.