CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Jayson Tatum scored 32 points, Payton Pritchard added 28 points and the Boston Celtics defeated the cold-shooting Charlotte Hornets 114-99 on Sunday night for their third straight victory.
Neemias Queta added 17 points and eight rebounds for the Celtics, who played their second consecutive game without Jaylen Brown (Achilles tendinitis).
LaMelo Ball had 19 points and Miles Bridges 14 for the Hornets, who entered the game leading the NBA in made 3-pointers (1,210) and third in 3-point percentage (38.2), but were just 12 of 43 from beyond the arc against the Eastern Conference's second-place team.
Ball, Brandon Miller and Kon Knueppel finished a combined 7 of 27 on 3-point shots.
Pritchard, who continued to be a terrific replacement for Brown, was able to get to the basket at will, finishing 10 of 18 from the field and 6 of 6 from the foul line. Pritchard entered the game averaging 25.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 7.3 assists in the previous eight games Brown missed this season.
Tatum was strong all night, shooting 12 of 23 from the field — including 5 of 10 from 3-point range — while adding eight assists.
The Celtics raced to a 19-point lead, holding the Hornets to 5-of-21 shooting from beyond the arc in the first half.
Charlotte had cut the lead to nine early in the fourth quarter before Tatum launched a 3 over Bridges from the top of the key and then stared into the crowd and pointed as the lead got back to 16.
After a Pritchard layup pushed the lead to 17 with 3:52 left, Hornets coach Charles Lee had seen enough and emptied the bench.
Charlotte ended its seven-game homestand with two straight losses after winning the first five to secure at least a spot in the play-in game.
Celtics: At Atlanta on Monday.
Hornets: At Brooklyn on Tuesday.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Woodside Musical Theatre proudly presents Jesus Christ Superstar in Concert — the company’s … Read moreJESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR in Concert
Planning your dream wedding? Discover everything you need at the Wedding Fair in the Park – … Read moreWedding Fair in the Park
“Side-splittingly funny and brilliantly chaotic” Read moreThe Play That Goes Wrong
Unassigned said:
Unassigned said:
Dirk van Ulden said:
Unassigned said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.