Jayson Tatum produced 28 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists to help the Celtics avoid a third straight home loss, as Boston beat the New Orleans Pelicans 118-112 on Monday.
Jaylen Brown added 22 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists for the Celtics, who overcame an 11-point, fourth-quarter deficit. Boston also received 20 points from Jrue Holiday and 17 from Derrick White.
The Pelicans took their third straight loss, all to teams that rank among the NBA's top four in winning percent. New Orleans fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday and to the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.
Brandon Ingram scored 28 and Zion Williamson finished with 26 for the Pelicans.
The Celtics trailed by 92-81 early in the fourth but went on a 23-6 run to take a 104-98 lead. White gave the Celtics the lead for good when he made a 3-pointer that put Boston in front 99-98 with 5:05 to play. It was one of three treys White sank in the final 6:22.
Starting center Kristaps Porzingis (ankle) and backup center Luke Kornet (hamstring) weren't available for Boston.
The Celtics led 8-5 early, but New Orleans seized the advantage with a 9-0 run and was up 36-25 after 12 minutes. The Pelicans shot 57.7 percent from the field in the opening quarter, and they made 5 of 9 3-point attempts.
New Orleans extended the lead to 44-27 on a pair of Williamson free throws capped an 8-0 run with 8:53 remaining in the second. The Celtics sliced the deficit to seven points on a Tatum layup with 2:55 left in the half. The Pelicans led 60-50 at halftime.
Boston opened the second half with a 10-2 run and trailed 62-60 with 9:39 left in the third. The Celtics took a 74-73 lead on a Sam Hauser 3-pointer with 4:51 to play in the quarter and led 76-73 before the Pelicans went on a 14-3 run to move in front 87-79. New Orleans led 87-81 entering the fourth.
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