Celtics-Hornets recap: C's bounce back; Williams draws ire of ex-teammates

Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The Boston Celtics bounced back from Wednesday's overtime loss in Indiana with a hard-fought victory Friday night in Charlotte.

Jayson Tatum finished with 34 points and 11 rebounds for his third double-double of the campaign. Jaylen Brown added 25 points, six boards, and five assists in the win.

Big man Neemias Queta stepped up in veteran Al Horford's absence. He ended up with 12 points and six rebounds (four offensive) in 24 minutes off the bench.

Hornets star LeMelo Ball had 31 points before fouling out late in the fourth quarter. Tre Mann had 23 off the bench for Charlotte.

Ex-Celtic Grant Williams took down former teammate Jayson Tatum with a questionable body check late in the fourth quarter. Tatum immediately walked off the floor under his own power, but Jaylen Brown and others on the C's stared Williams down after the bizarre move.

Williams was ejected with a Flagrant 2.

Score: 110-101 Celtics, 4:13 left in fourth quarter

Boston has widened its lead to nine points with just over four minutes to go. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have 27 and 25 points, respectively.

Big man Neemias Queta has stepped up off the bench with 10 points and five rebounds (three offensive) in 20 minutes.

One-handed slam 💥 pic.twitter.com/F9nyX9Pqts

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) November 2, 2024

Score: 103-99 Celtics, 7:07 left in fourth quarter

C's coach Joe Mazzulla was heated about an illegal screen call on big man Neemias Queta and received a technical foul after arguing with an official.

Boston is hanging on while Charlotte continues to shoot well from 3-point range (43.2 percent). Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown have 25 and 23 points, respectively. Derrick White has 16.

LaMelo Ball has a game-high 31 points for the Hornets.

Score: 92-86 Celtics

The C's take a six-point lead into the final frame. Jayson Tatum has led the way with a game-high 25 points and 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season. Jaylen Brown has 18 points, though his shooting woes have continued (6-16 FG, 0-6 3-PT).

With Al Horford out (load management), Boston has gotten a boost from its bench bigs. Luke Kornet has four points, four rebounds, and two blocks in Horford's place. Neemias Queta has six points and four rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench.

LeMelo Ball leads Charlotte with 21 points.

Score: 75-71 Celtics, 8:10 left in third quarter

The Hornets are keeping it close by shooting 41.9 percent (13-31) from 3-point range. They're outshooting the Celtics (9-29, 31 percent) from beyond the arc.

The Hornets announced center Nick Richards is questionable to return due to shoulder soreness.

Score: 71-67 Celtics

We've got ourselves a game in Charlotte. The Celtics led by as many as 15 points in the second quarter but the Hornets rallied to cut the deficit to four at the half.

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown lead the Celtics with 18 and 16 points, respectively. Big man Neemias Queta has played a big role off the bench with six points and four rebounds (three offensive) in 11 minutes.

LaMelo Ball has a game-high 19 points for the Hornets. Tre Mann has chipped in 10 off the bench.

Score: 65-61 Celtics, 2:39 left in second quarter

Jayson Tatum has re-entered the game after getting his thumb taped up. Jordan Walsh has a pair of 3-pointers in four minutes off the bench.

Charlotte has cut Boston's lead to four late in the first half. Tatum and Jaylen Brown lead the way with 18 and 16 points, respectively.

LaMelo Ball has a game-high 19 for Charlotte. Tre Mann has 10 off the bench.

Score: 58-43 Celtics, 6:49 left in second quarter

While Jayson Tatum got his thumb worked on, Jaylen Brown and Derrick White took care of business to widen the C's lead in the second quarter Brown is up to 14 points and Derrick White has 10.

You KNEW D-White was gonna make that 👌 pic.twitter.com/qzgfMWg8SC

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) November 1, 2024

Tatum has an icepack on his thumb, according to Spotrac's Keith Smith.

Score: 44-37 Celtics, 9:44 left in second quarter

Jayson Tatum is getting his left thumb checked out by trainers, per CLNS Media's Bobby Manning.

Charlotte has opened the second quarter on a 12-4 run to trim Boston's lead to seven.

Score: 40-25 Celtics

Boston has a comfortable lead over Charlotte thanks to a 16-point outburst from Jayson Tatum in the opening quarter.

The Celtics have also been outstanding on the glass with seven offensive rebounds.

Score: 27-17 Celtics, 4:20 left in first quarter

After a slow start, Jayson Tatum is up to a game-high 10 points on 4-of-7 shooting. He has helped the C's jump out to a double-digit lead with a 15-1 run in the opening quarter.

Tatum has now scored 10+ points in the first quarter in four out of five games this season.

Score: 18-16 Celtics, 6:16 left in first quarter

Jrue Holiday is 3-for-3 from the field, including 2-for-2 from 3-point range, and has a game-high eight points in the early going.

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown's shooting struggles have continued. They're a combined 3-for-8 from the floor and 0-for-3 from deep.

LaMelo Ball leads the Hornets with seven points.

LaMelo Ball, Seth Curry, Josh Green, Miles Bridges, and Nick Richards will start for Charlotte.

Derrick White, Jrue Holiday, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Luke Kornet will start for Boston.

Jaylen Brown chatted with former teammate Grant Williams before Friday's matchup:

Celtics stats guru Dick Lipe shared a wild Jayson Tatum stat ahead of Friday's action:

In NBA history, only five players have had at least 150+ points, 35+ rebs, 25+ assists and 10+ steals in the season's first five games: Jayson Tatum, Michael Jordan, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Larry Bird, and Kobe Bryant.

Former C's assistant Charles Lee, now head coach of the Hornets, spoke before Friday's game about his time with Boston.

“It was cool to go to a championship-caliber organization with so much history, how they structure their everyday schedule, and what it means to be a Celtic," he said during his pregame press conference. "It was just really cool and interesting for me and my family to experience."

Celtics big man Al Horford (load management) will get the first night of the back-to-back off. Expect Luke Kornet, Xavier Tillman, and Neemias Queta to see a minutes boost in his absence.