April 11, 2026, 1:27 p.m. ET
It really felt like the Boston Celtics could not miss from beyond the arc in their 144-118 drubbing of the New Orleans Pelicans at TD Garden Friday (April 10) night. Even Neemias Queta hit his first 3 of his NBA career in the win, and teammate Sam Hauser (who went 8-of-12 from deep himself) could not help but be impressed by the jumper from the Portuguese big man. “Oh, it was great,” said Hauser. “It was buttery. He was pretty excited about that one. We were pretty excited for him.”
“But yeah, he’s done a great job all year, gotten better and better and really shown why he’s a starting 5-man in this league and on our team,” added the Wisconsin native. “I think his name should be in the running for most improved player and he’s coming up big for us a lot this year. We’re going to need him to continue that.”
It was clear late in the game that the players knew they were closing in on the all-time single-game team 3-point record as well, especially with the crowd trying to goad them on. “It’s easy to be aware of with the crowd and everything, so maybe they got to be quiet, and we could break it one day,” said Payton Pritchard.
But after a last attempt from Baylor Scheierman late in the fourth quarter, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla pulled the plug on the effort, the team dribbling out their final possession. “You have to make shots,” said the Celtics coach.
“I think just good execution. I mean, Sam got hot, but I like the shots that we got, and we’re able to make them. And obviously, once you see a few go in you continue to do that. So, hopefully we didn’t use them all up in one game.”
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