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Hornets keep Celtics winless

Dec 29, 2011 - 5:34 AM New Orleans, LA (Sports Network) - No Chris Paul, no problem.

Through the first two games of a shortened NBA season, the New Orleans Hornets have not needed the services of their former star point guard.

Jarrett Jack poured in 21 points and dished out nine assists, leading the Hornets to a 97-78 thumping of the winless Boston Celtics on Wednesday.

Carl Landry had a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds, while Emeka Okafor and Marco Belinelli contributed 13 points and six rebounds apiece for 2-0 New Orleans.

Chris Kaman, who came to New Orleans in the Paul trade, scored 12 points and grabbed nine boards.

"I'm glad we won, we played hard and with a lot of grit," Hornets head coach Monty Williams said. "Sometimes you have to grit your teeth and play. We didn't have Eric [Gordon], so we needed to find those 20 points somewhere."

Ray Allen led the Celtics with 15 points, Rajon Rondo netted 13 and had six assists, and offseason signing Brandon Bass added 11 points.

Boston was without Paul Pierce for the third consecutive game due to a bruised heel, and Chris Wilcox also did not play because of a bruised left shoulder as the Celtics fell to 0-3 for the first time since 2006.

Boston jumped out to a 9-2 lead in the first quarter before a three-pointer by Bellinelli cut the lead to four with 8:10 to go.

That sparked an 8-0 New Orleans run for a one-point lead, and it went back and forth until the Hornets were able to put some distance between themselves and the Celtics.

They used an 11-2 run at the end of the first quarter to take the lead for good. Kaman's hook shot extended the overall burst to 13-2 early in the second, giving New Orleans a 26-18 edge.

The Hornets took their largest lead of the half on Okafor's bucket to make it 46-30 1:49 to play. New Orleans shot 41.5 percent from the floor to only 33.3 percent for Boston and led by nine, 48-39, at the break.

New Orleans continued to control the game in the third quarter, as a jumper by Belinelli made it a 15-point game with six minutes left. The Hornets led by nine, 72-63, after three quarters and never let it get closer than that.

"I don't think we were tight," Celtics head coach Doc Rivers said. "I just thought we played tired. We looked old tonight. It happens."

Game Notes

Gordon, who came over in the Paul deal, did not play due to a bruised right knee...Al-Farouq Aminu, the final piece of the Paul deal, went scoreless with a pair of rebounds in just under 11 minutes...New Orleans dominated inside, outscoring Boston 46-24 in the paint...New Orleans shot 45.6 percent from the floor and 4-of-12 from three-point range, while Boston shot just 37.2 percent from the floor and 7-of-17 from beyond the arc...Celtics forward Greg Stiemsma was assessed a technical foul with 37.8 seconds remaining in the game.