Boston, MA (Sports Network) - Paul Pierce scored seven points in overtime en
route to a 30-point night to lead the Celtics to a 97-92 victory over the
Houston Rockets at TD Garden on Tuesday.
Ray Allen added 21 points, while Kevin Garnett recorded a double-double with
13 points and 13 rebounds as the Celtics matched their longest winning streak
of the season with their fifth-straight victory.
Kyle Lowry filled the stat sheet with 18 points, seven boards and seven
assists. Luis Scola and Samuel Dalembert each chipped in a double-double as
Scola scored 18 and pulled down 14 boards, and Dalembert netted 11 points and
grabbed 17 rebounds. The Rockets dropped their fourth straight contest.
The extra session was a battle between Lowry and Pierce as Lowry netted six
points, but Pierce tallied seven to give Boston a 95-92 lead with 1:19 left.
After coming up empty on offense, Houston forced an eight-second violation on
Boston to regain possession with 30.3 seconds left still trailing by three.
However, Pierce forced a turnover from Lowry and Allen buried two at the line
to give the home team a five-point lead it would not relinquish.
Houston went cold in the fourth, failing to connect on a basket from the field
for a five-plus minute stretch in the fourth that saw the Celtics trim a 10-
point deficit to just three as Allen's layup made it an 80-77 game with 2:49
to play.
After Dalembert stopped the cold streak, Pierce and Garnett connected on two
free throws apiece to pull within one, 82-81, with 55.9 left on the clock.
Courtney Lee missed a runner on Houston's next possession and Allen made them
pay with a trey from the left corner that gave the home team an 84-82
advantage with 35.4 remaining.
Scola missed a jumper and Pierce secured the rebound and quickly sent the
outlet pass to a wide-open Rondo. However, Rondo missed the easy layup that
would have iced the game, and Goran Dragic hit a jumper from the corner on the
other end to tie the game at 84 with 3.0 ticks on the clock.
Rondo inbounded to Allen, who got a good look at the game-winner from the
elbow, but it hit the back of the rim to send the game to overtime.
Luis Scola led all scorers with 11 points in the first half to give the
Rockets a 28-21 edge after the first frame.
The Celtics used a 10-2 run over the first six-plus minutes of the second
quarter and a 9-1 spurt down the stretch to take a 46-40 lead at halftime.
After trailing by 10 in the third, Houston used a 10-1 surge to tie the game
at 61, then closed the quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 68-63 lead into the
fourth.
Game Notes
Both teams play on Wednesday as Boston will travel to Philadelphia and the
Rockets will head to Toronto...The Rockets dropped to 0-2 on their current
five-game road trip...Houston outrebounded Boston 57-38 in a losing effort.
The Sports Network