A spectacular slam dunk from Chris Boucher!

À DAY

Montrealer Chris Boucher often evolves in the shadow of the stars of the Toronto Raptors, but he was entitled to his moment of glory, Thursday night, against the New Orleans Pelicans. He wowed the gallery with an impressive slam dunk in a 115-110 victory for his team at Scotiabank Arena.

At the very end of the third quarter, Nick Nurse's men were already leading by 13 points when Boucher decided to humiliate the Louisiana team. Leaping from the free throw line, the 30-year-old looked like Michael Jordan as he flew over the floor before shoving the ball hard through the ring.

“He flew to Montreal and landed in Toronto,” joked the TSN network commentator assigned to the game description.

Boucher made his presence felt throughout the game, collecting nine points and eight rebounds in 23 minutes of play.

The Raptors had no trouble chasing the rust after the All-Star Game break and posted their sixth win in their last seven games , thanks in particular to the brilliance of the Jakob Pöltl center.

Acquired before the trade deadline, the Austrian completed his first double-double in the colors of the “Raps”, scoring 21 points and 18 rebounds.

Pascal Siakam struggled downtown , but that didn't stop him from collecting at least 25 points for a fifth straight duel. He had 26 in the day's game.

With Zion Williamson absent, Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum carried the Pelicans offense on their shoulders, amassing 36 and 23 points respectively.< /p>

CHRIS BOUCHER FROM THE FREE THROW LINE ✈️ pic.twitter.com/QMIpNxR7RS

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 24, 2023

The Pacers believed it

At Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Bennedict Mathurin and the Indiana Pacers suffered a heartbreaking 142 loss at 138 in overtime against the Boston Celtics.

Led by 10 points at halftime, the hosts put their shoulder to the wheel to close the gap. Two successful free throws by Tyrese Haliburton at the end of the fourth quarter confirmed the holding of an additional period.

Jayson Tatum, however, sealed the outcome of the duel. The Celtics star player scored the last four points for the winners, bringing his total to 31 in the game.

For his part, Mathurin had set the tone for overtime by threading the needle from center- city. He had 19 points and seven rebounds in the loss, days after starring in the Rising Stars mini-tournament.

Myles Turner was the Pacers' top player with 40 points and 10 rebounds.