National Basketball Association
Boston 105, San Antonio 103
When: 7:30 PM ET, Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Where: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Officials:
#55 Bill Kennedy, #70 Brent Barnaky, #67 John Goble
Attendance:
18624
By SportsDirect Inc.
Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen played catch-and-shoot all night, and Allen sparked a game-winning run as the Boston Celtics defeated the visiting San Antonio Spurs, 105-103, on Wednesday night in a battle between the top teams in their respective conferences.
Rondo had 22 assists and Allen shot 13-of-16 from the floor, most coming on curl moves that the Spurs could not defend. And after a last-minute meltdown, captain Paul Pierce stepped up and blocked a 3-pointer by Manu Ginobili, who sparked a fourth-quarter comeback with 20 of his 24 points.
Rondo had 12 points and 10 rebounds for his second triple-double of the season and added six steals. Allen scored 31 points, Glen Davis added 23 and Pierce 18 for the Celtics (27-7), who have won three in a row.
In a closely contested game, Boston used a 10-0 run late in the third quarter sparked by 3-pointers from Pierce and Allen that opened a 77-70 edge. San Antonio chipped away in the fourth quarter and took a 92-90 lead on two free throws by Tim Duncan with 4:54 left.
But Boston put together a 15-4 surge over the next four minutes to pull away. Davis started the spurt with a pair of jumpers, Allen added a pair of free throws and drained a 3-point dagger for a 105-96 lead with 1:37 left. Forty seconds later, he stripped George Hill and converted a fast-break layup to complete the run.
The Spurs looked dead but rallied with a 3-pointer from Ginobili, a steal and layup by Tony Parker and a steal by Ginobili leading to two free throws by Richard Jefferson. When Allen uncharacteristically missed two free throws, San Antonio had a chance to tie or win but Pierce's play saved the win.
Duncan and Parker scored 18 points apiece for San Antonio (29-6), which allowed Boston to shoot 61 percent in dropping consecutive games for the first time this season.
Top Game Performances
San Antonio |
|
Boston |
Manu Ginobili 24 |
Scoring |
Ray Allen 31 |
Tony Parker 5 |
Assists |
Rajon Rondo 23 |
Manu Ginobili 8 |
Rebounds |
Rajon Rondo 10 |
Manu Ginobili 7 |
Free Throws Made |
Ray Allen 3 |
Manu Ginobili 5 |
Steals |
Rajon Rondo 6 |
Tim Duncan 2 |
Blocks |
Jermaine O'Neal 1 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
San Antonio
|
103 |
45.3 |
9-22 |
16-17 |
20 |
37 |
2 |
8 |
15 |
Boston
|
105 |
61.3 |
5-9 |
8-15 |
34 |
36 |
4 |
10 |
18 |
Upcoming Games
-
Boston will play their next game at home against Toronto. The Celtics have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
-
San Antonio will play their next game on the road against Indiana. The Spurs have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.