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Hornets top Celtics behind Walker's 33

Jan 6, 2015 - 5:38 AM Boston, MA (SportsNetwork.com) - Kemba Walker scored 33 points to help the Charlotte Hornets top the Boston Celtics 104-95 on Monday.

It was Walker's second straight game of at least 30 points and Charlotte's second straight win. He also added five assists and five rebounds.

Cody Zeller chipped in 20 points and seven boards for Charlotte.

Jared Sullinger paced Boston with 22 points and eight rebounds as the Celtics fell to 2-7 since trading Rajon Rondo to the Dallas Mavericks.

The Celtics got 55 points from their bench, led by Jae Crowder and James Young each depositing 13.

After not having led since the game was 2-0 through 24 seconds, the Celtics made a late comeback bid. Down by 16 with 7:47 remaining, Boston's 10-0 run that included 3-pointers from Crowder and Young got them within two possessions.

"I was kind of nervous when I first got in, my first time playing really in the regular season," said Young. "I was just trying to go out there in the second half and just be aggressive, everyone told me just to be aggressive."

The Hornets called timeout, and Marvin Williams' 3-point play on the next possession restored order. That started a 12-3 Charlotte run that ran its lead back to 15 points with 2 1/2 minutes to go.

Boston scored the next eight points and did not allow Charlotte to hit another shot from the floor, but the Hornets hit four free throws in the final minute to hang on.

"We made plays. We could have got frustrated, we could have got down but we stayed with the game," said Walker.

Jeff Green's layup put the Celtics up 2-0, but the Hornets would go on an 11-0 run soon afterward to take a 15-4 lead. Walker scored seven points in that spurt and finished the quarter with 11 as Charlotte led 24-16 after one.

The Hornets expanded their lead in the second quarter by limiting Boston to 35 percent shooting to build a 50-36 advantage at the break.

A back-and-forth third quarter ended with a 79-62 lead for the visitors. Williams' 3-pointer with 47 seconds left in the period extended the Hornets' lead to a game-high 22 points, but Young scored the final five of the quarter to cut the Celtics' deficit.

Game Notes

Charlotte leads the four-game season series 2-0 ... Boston is 0-10 when scoring fewer than 100 points ... Walker has 20 or more points in 10 of his last 15 games ... The Hornets held a 48-33 advantage on the boards ... The Celtics scored 20 points off 16 Charlotte turnovers and only had six giveaways themselves.