BOSTON — The Boston Celtics overcame Detroit’s dominance inside by passing the ball precisely and protecting it better than they had all season. ADVERTISING BOSTON — The Boston Celtics overcame Detroit’s dominance inside by passing the ball precisely and protecting
BOSTON — The Boston Celtics overcame Detroit’s dominance inside by passing the ball precisely and protecting it better than they had all season.
Rajon Rondo had 18 of Boston’s season-high 38 assists and the Celtics committed just seven turnovers in a 118-111 win over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday night.
“When one guy has it going as far as passing the ball, it’s contagious,” said Rondo, who also scored 11 points and didn’t turn the ball over. “We scored a bunch of points tonight. We kept on pushing. We played free and just had fun.”
Jeff Green scored 27 points, Kris Humphries had 20 points and 11 rebounds and Kelly Olynyk added 18 points off the bench for the Celtics in their second-highest scoring output of the season.
Jerryd Bayless had 15 points and Jared Sullinger 14 for the Celtics, who got at least one assist from every player that entered the game.
“I think we do have a pretty unselfish group moving the ball. We missed a couple of extra passes, but not very many,” Boston coach Brad Stevens said. “It’s good to see the body movement and the ball movement. I think we’ve been pretty active on that end of the floor.”
Josh Smith had 28 points and 11 rebounds for the Pistons and was one of three Detroit players with double-doubles. Andre Drummond had 18 points and 22 rebounds and Greg Monroe finished with 22 points and 14 boards. Will Bynum added 18 points off the bench for the Pistons, who have lost seven of eight and 10 of their last 12.
“I think that our effort level needs to be a little bit harder,” Bynum said. “I think maybe we need to play with a sense of urgency. We are trying to make the playoffs.”
Detroit controlled the game inside, outrebounding Boston 54-39 and outscoring the Celtics 64-44 in the paint. However, the Pistons committed 16 turnovers and could not cool off the Celtics once they started hitting shots.
Boston shot 15 for 22 in the third quarter, including eight 3-pointers, in its highest scoring game since beating Orlando 120-105 on Nov. 11.
“Sometimes we close out hoping they miss and I thought down the stretch of the game, we closed out trying to make them miss,” Detroit coach John Loyer said. “We dared them to shoot the basketball and they had a very good shooting night, but you’ve got to adjust as the game goes on and guys are shooting the ball.”
Boston beat the Pistons for the first time in three meetings this season.
Detroit had rallied from 21-points down to win in Boston on Dec. 18, but the Celtics were able to hold off the Pistons each time they rallied down the stretch this time.
BULLS 95
HEAT 88, OT
CHICAGO — Joakim Noah had 20 points and 12 rebounds, D.J. Augustin scored 22 and the Chicago Bulls beat the Miami Heat 95-88 in overtime after Jimmy Butler stripped the ball from LeBron James at the end of regulation.
Dwyane Wade scored 25 for Miami, but with James struggling again, the Heat dropped their third straight to match their longest losing streak of the season.
James scored 17 points on 8-of-23 shooting and couldn’t come through after Miami blew a 12-point lead down the stretch. With a chance to win it at the end of regulation, he was stopped by Butler on a layup attempt.
In overtime, it was all Bulls. Chicago outscored Miami 9-2, starting with Augustin’s 3 just under a minute in.
Noah also had seven assists and five blocks with his dad — tennis great Yannick Noah — looking on. Butler added 16 points and 11 rebounds.
LAKERS 114
THUNDER 110
LOS ANGELES — Jodie Meeks scored 24 of his career-high 42 points in the second half, helping the Lakers overcome a triple-double by Thunder star Kevin Durant.
Pau Gasol added 20 points and 11 rebounds for the injury-ravaged Lakers, who had lost 29 of their previous 37 games. Meeks was 11 of 18 from the field and 14 for 14 at the line while becoming the third player to reach the 30-point mark this season for Los Angeles.
Durant had 27 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists for his third triple-double this season. Serge Ibaka had 21 points and 15 boards for Oklahoma City.
The Lakers trailed the Thunder by as many as 18 in the second quarter before taking their first lead on a pair of free throws by Meeks that made it 71-70 with 4:35 left in the third.
