CELTICS BUCK ANOTHER ALL-STAR INJURY, HAMMER OUT 11TH STRAIGHT VICTORY
BOSTON— Another game, another injury, another win for the Boston Celtics. Jayson Tatum had 16 points, Shane Larkin added 16 off the bench and the Celtics overcame an injury to Kyrie Irving and a 12-point, fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Charlotte Hornets, 90-87, on Friday night.
Terry Rozier finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists, playing an increased role after Irving left the game in the first quarter after taking an elbow to the face. Jaylen Brown added 10 points and 13 rebounds.
The Celtics extended their win streak to 11 games. Charlotte has lost four straight.
“We just got a lot of fighters, a lot of resilient guys,” Larkin said of a team that’s now seen Gordon Hayward, Al Horford and now Irving beset by injuries.
He said his teammates’ misfortunes have underlined the necessity of staying ready.
“I’m always locked it. That’s my job. I don’t know when my opportunity’s gonna be there,” Larkin said. “Tonight I hit some shots early, coach kept rocking with me, so I tried to throw my best.”
Celtics center Aron Baynes’ elbow inadvertently struck Irving when Baynes was landing after a rebound attempt. Irving fell to the floor and was bleeding from the nose as he was escorted back to the locker room. Irving was ruled out for the rest of the game while he was monitored for possible concussion symptoms.
Larkin said Irving spoke to the team at halftime and texted them all congratulations on the win.
Kemba Walker led the Hornets with 20 points and 11 assists.
Celtics trailed by 12 after three quarters, but opened the fourth on a 16-3 run and took the lead with 4:05 to play on a basket by Brown.
“We’re giving up huge leads. We’re not maintaining our game,” Walker said. “We’ve got to be better as a whole.”
The Celtics struggled at the start, missing 10 of their first 11 attempts from the field.