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BOSTON -- The Boston Celtics took their defense from solid in the first half to stifling in the second.Isaiah Thomas scored 16 of his 26 points after halftime and Al Horford had 18 points and five blocked shots as Boston beat the Charlotte Hornets 96-88 on Friday night to stop a three-game slide.Coach just told us we needed to step up our level of energy a little more on the defensive end, Horford said. We did that and that was the big difference.Getting Thomas back after he missed four straight games with a groin strain didnt hurt, either.Thomas scored nine in the third quarter as the Celtics fought back from a 12-point deficit. He added seven in the fourth to help Boston put away the Hornets.We got stops and got running, Thomas said. The one thing we did in the fourth quarter is we just spaced the floor and made plays for each other. Guys hit big shots.Avery Bradley and Jae Crowder added 12 points apiece for the Celtics, who held the Hornets to 13 field goals in the second half.Charlotte played without leading scorer Kemba Walker, who did not travel with the team due to personal reasons, and lost its fourth straight.Although the Hornets outrebounded Boston 54-46, the Celtics outscored them 38-30 in the paint as Charlotte had trouble converting inside.We have to finish some of these plays, coach Steve Clifford said. You get these point-blank ones and you dont have the floor balance in there back the other way. There were two or three of those that were huge plays.Nicolas Batum led the Hornets with 22 points and 10 rebounds.Ramon Sessions had 13 points and six assists, Marco Belinelli scored 11 and Jeremy Lamb added 10 points for the Hornets.Crowder hit a 3 with 6:11 left to put Boston up 80-79 after Charlotte scored seven straight points. Thomas drew a flagrant foul by Belinelli and hit both free throws. Boston retained possession because of the flagrant, and Crowder drew another foul and added two more free throws to put Boston ahead 84-79.Cody Zeller missed from inside for Charlotte, and Thomas came back with a 3-pointer to make it 87-79 with 4:52 left. Charlotte turned it over right away after the inbounds play and Bradley added another 3 that gave Boston a 90-79 cushion with 4:24 to go.After a basket by Belinelli with 6:32 left completed their 7-0 run, the Hornets went scoreless until his layup with 2:20 remaining cut it to 92-81.Boston held Charlotte to five field goals in the third quarter, when the Hornets were 5 of 23.Charlotte closed the second on a 14-4 run and took a 50-41 lead into halftime. The Hornets led 60-48 early in the third when the Celtics started their surge. Kelly Olynyk hit a 3-pointer to tie it at 62 with 3:57 left, and it was tied 69-all at the end of the third.MISSING KEMBASessions started for Walker and had six assists, but the Hornets offense appeared lost without Walker.Hes one of the best in the league, so we missed him a lot tonight, Batum said. We played better tonight overall. But we should have won that game, anyway. No excuses.COLD OUTSIDEAfter shooting 2 of 14 from beyond the arc in the first half, the Celtics started hitting from outside in the third period. They went 7 of 14 on 3-pointers in the second half and held Charlotte to 19 points in each of the final two quarters.WELCOME BACKThomas hadnt played since scoring 20 points against Houston on Dec. 5. The Celtics went 1/3 in the games he missed and were happy to have him leading the offense once again.It helps all of us just because it opens the floor even more. Teams have to play us a little more honest, said Horford, who also had eight rebounds, five assists and two steals. Its just good to have him back.TIP-INSHornets: Walker is averaging 22.6 points per game. He missed his first game this season, but was expected to return when the Hornets visit Atlanta on Saturday night. Walkers absence made Belinelli and Sessions the only Charlotte players to appear in all 27 games this season.Celtics: Jonas Jerebko scored nine points to lead Bostons reserves.UP NEXTHornets: At the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night.Celtics: At the Miami Heat on Sunday night.Jahlani Tavai Lions Jersey . Its the second straight game Bell has scored in extra time for Kelowna, which beat the Brandon Wheat Kings 6-5 on Friday, and he now has four game-winning goals on the season. Calvin Johnson Youth Jersey . Their 38th instalment is arguably their biggest fight card to date, including three-title fights and a main event which was selected by the fans. 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That plan didnt go so well early.WASHINGTON -- Olympic athletes who bring home the gold, silver and bronze for Team USA will no longer pay a victory tax for their achievement under a bill President Barack Obama signed into law Friday.The IRS will now be prohibited from taxing most medals or other prizes awarded to U.S. Olympians.The bill was among more than a dozen pieces of legislation signed by Obama, including measures to help sexual assault victims and parents with babies in need of a diaper change. Another new law targets the growing worldwide problem of illegal wildlife poaching and trafficking.The U.S. Olympic Committee awards cash prizes to medalists, ranging from $25,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze. The cash prize comes on top of the value of the medals themselves: $600 for gold and $300 for silver; bronze medals arent worth much.The money had been considered earned income, making it subject to tax. Lawmakers who objected to the tax passed legislation to eliminate it, citing the levy as an unfair burden on U.S. athletes who spend years sacrificing and training in their sport, often at great financial expense.But not all Team USA medalists will be exempt. The tax will still apply to high-profile athletes who earn at least $1 million a year, like swimmer Michael Phelps.Other measures signed into law Friday will:-Establish a federal bill of rights for sexual assault survivors to ensure that plaintiffs in federal criminal cases have the right to a sexual assault evidence collection kit, to be told of the results and to be notified in writing before the kit is destroyed. The law was spurred by the case of Amanda Nguyen, a former Harvard University student who was sexually assaulted in Massachusetts. Nguyen said she was repeatedly required to return to Massachusetts to prevent her rape kit from being destroyed and also had a hard time keeping up with developments in the legal case.-Make federal buildings more family friendly by requiring that baby-changing stations be installed, wiithin two years, in restrooms in federal buildings that are open to the public.dddddddddddd That would include courthouses, post offices, Social Security offices and some government-run museums like the Holocaust Memorial Museum and the National Archives.-Boost efforts to combat wildlife poaching and trafficking by supporting the work of a presidential task force. The law also directs U.S. agencies to work with countries affected by wildlife crime, such as Zimbabwe, where the 2015 killing of Cecil the lion by an American during an illegal hunt sparked a worldwide outcry. Prosecutors will get more tools to go after individuals involved in trophy hunting and other crimes while the State Department will provide Congress annually with a list of countries considered major sources, transit points or consumers of wildlife trafficking.For Phelps, the tax bill for the five gold and one silver he won in Rio could cost him as much as $55,000. Gymnast Simone Biles faces a possible $43,000 tax bill for landing four golds and a bronze.Most of these athletes will never sign an endorsement deal or a professional contract, which is why its so important that these athletes will no longer be forced to pay a big tax bill when they achieve their Olympic dreams representing the United States, said Rep. Robert Dold, R-Ill., sponsor of the bill, which cleared the House by a vote of 415-1.Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., cast the lone vote against what he called bad policy.The law applies retroactively to the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil. It will not affect taxes on an athletes endorsement or sponsorship income.Team USA brought home 121 medals from Rio Games, including 46 gold medals.---Associated Press writer Matthew Daly contributed to this report.---The bill is H.R. 5946.---Follow Darlene Superville on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/dsupervilleap ' ' '