The Boston Celtics defeated the Charlotte Hornets, 113-107, at TD Garden on Wednesday night.

The Celtics (28-25) have been playing excellent of late and secured another comfortable win, this time against another contending team in the East such as the Hornets (28-24). Boston quickly jumped to a solid lead and outscored their rivals by five points in the first 12 minutes of action (27-22), but the Hornets would respond with a 31-27 score in the second quarter. Leading by just one point, Boston didn't want the game to slip away and outscored their rivals by a 34-25 score, making it a 10-point lead with only 12 minutes left on the clock. Charlotte attempted a comeback but they fell short following a 29-25 score, and that meant the Celtics sneaked away with a comfortable, solid win.

Marcus Smart had 22 points to lead the Celtics, and he also added six assists and four rebounds. Jaylen Brown had 15 points, six boards and six assists, while Jayson Tatum posted 19 points, nine assists and six rebounds. The leading scorer for Boston came off the bench, though, as Jason Richardson delivered 23 points. Robert Williams III had 10 points and eight rebounds, and Grant Williams ended with 12 points while coming off the bench.

LaMelo Ball did everything to prevent the Hornets' loss and finished with 38 points, nine assists and six boards, while Terry Rozier posted 23 points, five rebounds and four dimes. P.J. Washington delivered 16 points and seven rebounds, and Kelly Oubre Jr. had 15 points off the bench. No other Charlotte player scored in double digits in this one.