No Big Three – No Problem: Rajon Rondo has a 20 point-16 assist night as Boston Celtics rout Charlotte Bobcats 94-82 .......
On Sunday night at the Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, NC, the Boston Celtics defeated the Charlotte Bobcats 94-82 in the absence of the Big Three. Charlotte, have now lost 16th straight games which is the 2nd
time this season they have been forced upon such fate.
Coach Doc Rivers decided to rest his star players Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce for the night while Ray Allen missed yet another game with a right ankle injury. With all three being absent from the line up, the rest of the Celtics
stepped their game up in a major way as they bulldozed the team with the worst record in the NBA.
The absence of the veterans only meant more responsibility for Rajon Rondo. He responded back in great fashion as he played 43:14 minutes in the game, scoring 20 points in the game while dishing out 16 assists, making this the
20th consecutive game in which he has recorded double-figure assists.
With this performance, Rondo has joined the all time greats like John Stockton and Magic Johnson
to become the third player in NBA history to record 20 consecutive games with double-digit assists. Avery Bradley and Brandon Bass scored 22 points each in the game while Mickael Pietrus contributed 11 points. Four of Boston`s starters ended the game,
scoring in double figures.
Gerald Henderson was the leading scorer for the Bobcats with 22 points. Derrick Brown added 15 points while DJ White contributed 13 points on the night.
Both team started the game of well as the scores were very close for most part of the first quarter. Charlotte were trailing by just 21-23 with 2:32 remaining the in the first period. From then on though, Boston closed out the
quarter on an 11-2 run to get a hold of the matchup.
The lead was quickly extended to 10 and remained in double figures for most part of the second quarter. However, with 2:11 remaining and 9 points to separate the two teams, the Bobcats ripped off a 6-0 run to chip the lead down
to 3 at the half way stage, 52-49.
On the first possession of the second half, Rondo was hit with a technical foul but Kemba Walker failed to convert the free throw. From there on, the minimum the lead got in the third quarter was 3 points as the Celtics kept their
grip firm on the match to lead for the entire third period. Boston, were ahead by 6 points going into the fourth, 73-67.
In the final quarter, the Bobcats rallied and with Brown`s dunk at the 6:55 mark, they were able to make it a two possession game. However, the Celtics responded back with 10-2 run to get ahead by 12 in the contest. During that
run, Pietrus and Bradley hit two key bombs from long range.
Celtics closed out the remaining 3 and a half minutes comfortably, leading by double figures. In the end Boston took this one with a margin of 12 points.
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