The Boston Celtics faced off against the Charlotte Hornets in a highly anticipated matchup that ended in a disappointing 98-131 loss for the Celtics. From the start, it was clear that the Hornets were determined to dominate the game, with their sharp shooting and aggressive defense proving too much for the struggling Celtics to handle.
Despite their best efforts, the Celtics simply could not keep up with the relentless pace set by the Hornets. Kemba Walker led the charge for Charlotte, scoring an impressive 32 points and dishing out 11 assists. On the other hand, Jayson Tatum struggled to find his rhythm, finishing with only 15 points on a poor shooting night.
The Boston Celtics will attempt to avoid their third straight loss when they face the visiting Charlotte Hornets on Friday night.
Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday, then fell 118-109 to the visiting New York Knicks on Thursday. The Celtics have been resting their starters in the fourth quarter of games since they clinched the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference on April 3.
Luke Kornet finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Sam Hauser and Neemias Queta both also had 16 points for Boston, which led by as many as 33 and had only six turnovers.
Pritchard will be counted on coming off the bench in the playoffs and coach Joe Mazzulla said his performance was indicative of how much he has grown and bought into his role this season.
Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford - all sat out with nagging ailments in what was essentially a rest night for them. Boston has already locked up the top seed in the Eastern Conference and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. 
The absences gave the Celtics the opportunity to give some playing time to rookie Jordan Walsh and call up two-way players Queta, JD Davison and Drew Peterson from the G League to fill in, a night after they all played with Maine at Oklahoma City in Game 2 the G League Finals. Maine hosts Oklahoma City Blue in Portland on Sunday to crown the G League champion. 
The Hornets have been eliminated from playoff contention since March 23 and played without former Celtic Grant Williams, who was listed out with a sprained right ankle, and Nick Richards (right plantar fascia). 
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