NEW ORLEANS — Guard Isaiah Thomas came off the bench to score 17 of his team-high 27 points in the second half, including three 3-pointers in a 2:38 span of the fourth quarter, to power the Boston Celtics’ to a 104-98 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans Friday night at the Smoothie King Center.
Thomas broke open a 68-68 tie at the end of the third quarter with a conventional 3-point play, a driving scoop over forward Anthony Davis and a free throw. From that point, the Celtics (25-35) outscored the Pelicans 25-10 over the next 6:29 to break open the game, 93-78, with 5:57 left.
Thomas exploded for three 3-pointers to spark a 14-3 run in the fourth quarter that gave Boston an 82-71 lead. Thomas then added three free throws after being fouled behind the 3-point line by Norris Cole, and the Celtics led 85-73.
The Celtics took advantage of six New Orleans turnovers in the third quarter to take a 71-68 lead into the final period. Five of the Pelicans’ turnovers came in a 3:10 span of the third quarter, and Boston used an 8-0 run to 68-62 lead.
The Pelicans (33-29) had a chance to move into the eighth playoff position in the Western Conference, but they committed 18 turnovers and could not take advantage of home court despite Davis’ game-high 29 points.
Davis countered the Celtics’ torrid perimeter shooting in the first half by working mostly on the inside, scoring 16 first-half points and grabbing seven rebounds as the teams battled to a 46-46 tie.
The Celtics made 6 of 13 3-pointers in the first half, with six players hitting one each. That helped counter-balance Davis’ 8-of-13 shooting, which included three alley-oop dunks.
The Celtics used a 13-2 surge to take a 40-29 lead with 7:30 left in the second quarter, but the Pelicans answered with a 10-3 run of their own, including a pair of baskets by reserve forward Luke Babbitt, to cut the deficit.