The NBA-leading Boston Celtics fell apart in the final quarter as the hot Hornets (47-21) beat them 113-106 in front of a boisterous, sellout crowd of 18,280 at the Arena. That was 81 more fans than the Bees' game with the Lakers drew last week. It was the ninth sellout of the season.
The Celtics turned the ball over 10 times in the final quarter and committed 21 turnovers during the game, leading to 32 Hornets points. The Bees just gave up the ball just 9 times for Celtics 7 points in that quarter.
"You shoot 55 per cent from the field and score 106 points, you probably should win," said Celtics coach Doc Rivers. "When you outrebound them (44-29) and you still lose, that usually points to one thing, and tonight it was the turnovers.
"We were really careless with the ball and took quick shots. We gambled a little too much defensively and it came back to haunt us."
David West haunted the Celtics all night long with 37 points. The Celtics' Paul Pierce countered with 28 and Rajon Rondo gave Chris Paul fits with 23 points. West hit 15 of 25 field goals and was 7-of-7 at the free throw line.
Paul, seriously hampered by foul trouble all night, played just 29 minutes and scored 19 points with 7 assists and 2 steals. He knocked down two jumpers in the final three minutes.
Faces in the crowd belonged to Glenn Dorsey, Deuce McAllister, Mike McKenzie, Bobby Hebert and Michael Lewis.
Paul picked up his fifth foul and went to the bench with 31.4 second left in the third quarter. West scored 14 points in the third.
"David West single-handedly destroyed us," said Rivers.
Paul's backup, Jannero Pargo scored 15 points with 6 assists.
"The Hornets played hard, they played with more energy, and they deserved to win," said the Boston coach. "Sure it was our fifth straight game on the road, but the Hornets have playing tough games every night. They are in the West."
The Hornets have allowed only 40 points in their last three fourth quarters.
Former LSU standout Glen "Big Baby" Davis hasn't been playing as much of late, but he's taken some giant strides in the eyes of the coaches. He didn't play against the Hornets.
Returning home for the first time since leaving for Boston before the season. "He’s getting better," said Rivers. "He's really growing up. That issue was one of the reasons he was a second-round draft choice. It wasn't because of his talent. It was because of the other stuff, and that's been a focus of ours. I'm really happy for the kid."
Davis wound up with 30 tickets for the game; but his return was fairly low key.
"I went to Baton Rouge on Friday to see my grandmother and my mom and my sisters," he said. "It feels good getting back home, being back in Louisiana."
Although the Celtics didn't practice on Sunday, Davis returned to Boston with the team. "I've got to work out and get ready for the next game."
Former Hornet P. J. Brown played 11 minutes and scored two points for the Celtics. Brown, who lives in Slidell, is 38 and whether he returns next season remains to be seen. As soon as the Celtics' jet touched down here, he went to Slidell to see his family. The timing couldn't have been better as he celebrated the birthday of one of his daughters.
Bonzi Wells has been a valuable addition since arriving from Houston in a trade. He scored 12 points against the Celtics and is averaging 12.2 points in his last five games.
The Hornets next go on a six-game road trip against East teams. The tour starts at Indianapolis with the Pacers on Tuesday, followed by stops in Cleveland, Boston, Toronto, Orlando and Miami.
COLSTON TO BE READY SOON
Off the typewriter...
Marques Colston has had his knee scoped, but expects to be back running and cutting in two or three weeks. "I had a scope to clean out a lot of thing in there," said the Saints wide receiver. "I'm still limited as far as conditioning goes, but I'm getting my conditioning on the bike. If I needed to, I probably could go, but it's not smart at this point. I just want to get as healthy as possible." He was banged up most of last season, but didn't miss any games. The knee, chest and hand injuries have healed. Colston is on the final year of his contract, but hasn't contacted the Saints about an extension He'll make $445,000 this season and next season should jump to $6 million...
Now that the Saints' offseason training is under way, mending Deuce McAllister will be split his time between Metairie and Birmingham, where he had his torn ACL repaired. "One thing you have in Birmingham is you're with guys that have had ACLs or something similar," said McAllister. "You see a lot of guys coming in and they're in different stages. "CBSSports.com is out with another mock draft and has the Dolphins taking defensive Chris Long of Virginia with the top pick, followed by the Rams selecting offensive tackle Jake Long of Michigan and the Falcons going for defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey of LSU...
There will be a journalism class at PennState this fall that will focus solely on Joe Paterno's relationship with the media. What's the name of the class going to be, Cranky Old Codger 101? Did you see where the nation's No. 1 football recruit, quarterback Terrelle Pryor, has said he will go to OhioState. That's great for the Buckeyes. Maybe now they can get within two touchdowns of a SEC team...For long-suffering Nebraskans, this could have been the longest winter of their lives. In a state where Huskers football is a way of life, how does one fight off the depression that comes with a 5-7 season that saw one opponents score 76 points and another 65, and resulted in the dismissal of both a coach and athletic director. Legendary coach Tom Osborne was brought back to hire a new coach and he hired former LSU defensive coordinator Bo Pelini to save Nebraska. He was a highly popular figure in the state based on his season as Nebraska's coordinator in 2003. Now Pelini, 40, begins the unenviable task of cleaning up the mess left behind his predecessor -- and hopefully, putting some smiles back peoples faces. Already, he has had to deal with off-campus disciplinary problems...
Soundbites...
Charles Barkley, NBA analyst, om his choice for MVP: "Chris Paul is a one-man wrecking crew, but Kobe Bryant is the best player in the NBA so I'll vote for Bryant."
Johnathan Vilma, new Saints middle linebacker, on the team's defensive changes: "It's not enough to just improve the defense. You have to improve to the point where you're winning. If you're not winning games and divisions and going to the Super Bowl, you have not improved enough. You have to improve the defense and be able to win with the defense."
Tyson Chandler, Hornets center, on getting David West back from injuries: "Getting David back was huge for us. He stretches the floor for us. Our offense kinda works like a machine, and while he's out there he brings something to the table. So having him back really boosts our offense."
David Patten, Saints receiver and owner of three Super Bowl rings, on Reggie Bush: "The expectations for him were so high, people are disappointed. But at the same time, he's still a baby, still a puppy. He's still learning the game. Whever he hits his stride, the sky is really the limit. Reality is just setting in. He knows within himself, 'there's a lot expected of me.' He knows he's going to have to have to work hard to get back that level. All the expectations are set because of what he did in college."
Jay Leno, on March Madness: "A Chicago consulting firm said that March Madness is going to cost U.S. businesses $1.7 billion in lost productivity. In fact, so many people are watching basketball at work, they don't even have time to look at porn."
The NBA-leading Boston Celtics fell apart in the final quarter as the hot Hornets (47-21) beat them 113-106 in front of a boisterous, sellout crowd of 18,280 at the Arena. That was 81 more fans than the Bees' game with the Lakers drew last week. It was the ninth sellout of the season.
