Hornets at Celtics
A pair of Eastern Conference squads going in opposite directions meet up Monday when the sliding Charlotte Hornets visit the surging Boston Celtics. With four straight losses and six in their last seven games, the Hornets are in danger of falling below .500 for the first time since last February.
Meanwhile, the Celtics have won six of seven and 12 of 15 behind the stellar play of point guard Isaiah Thomas, who hit the game-winner with two seconds left in Friday's 103-101 win at Atlanta and is on a roll that has pushed him into the fringe of some MVP discussions at the season's midpoint. "I think [coach Brad Stevens] was trying to call timeout at first," Thomas said of his latest example of fourth-quarter heroics. "Then he was trying to do a play to run a pick-and-roll, but I called it off a little bit. And he trusts me. At the end he said, ‘Hell of a shot.’" Thomas scored seven fourth-quarter points to lead Boston past Charlotte in the first meeting and had 16 of his 26 points after halftime in a 96-88 triumph over the Hornets last month at home. That result capped a four-game losing streak for Charlotte, and its current one was extended to four with Friday's 102-93 loss at Philadelphia.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, FSN Southeast (Charlotte), CSN New England (Boston)
ABOUT THE HORNETS (20-20): Charlotte lost its last five on the road - including the first four of its current five-game road trip - but it starts a stretch Wednesday in which it will play 10 of 14 at home. Opponents are averaging 113 points against the Hornets during their 1-6 slide, and they are 0-11 on the road when being outshot by the other team, as was the case when the 76ers held Charlotte to 32.9 percent, just a shade better than its season low (32.7) at Boston last month. Leading scorer Kemba Walker missed that contest but had 29 points on 10-of-16 shooting in the first encounter with the Celtics on Oct. 29.
ABOUT THE CELTICS (25-15): Guard Avery Bradley, who made a career-high eight 3-pointers in the first win over Charlotte, missed the last four games with a strained Achilles but is nearing a return. Marcus Smart started all four of those games and recorded four steals in two of them, but his offensive inconsistency has been on display as well. The third-year pro shot 13-for-21 in the first two games without Bradley but is 5-for-24 - including 1-of-9 from 3-point range - in the last two.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Celtics won six of the last seven meetings.
2. Hornets SG Marco Belinelli is 4-for-16 from 3-point distance since returning from an ankle sprain earlier this month after shooting 45.7 percent in December.
3. Boston C Kelly Olynyk is averaging 14.3 points while making 9-of-13 3-pointers over his last four games.