Latest Boston Celtics news

Celtics’ defense crests while Pierce rests

Paul Pierce was campaigning to return to action the day after undergoing surgery for an infection in his right knee last week. But coach Doc Rivers turned down Pierce’s request to join the team in Orlando, where the Celtics took an 86-77 victory Friday. And the Celtics are discouraging Pierce from attempting to return before their next home game, against ...

Garnett OK after crashing to floor

Having had to sit Kevin Garnett Tuesday against Indiana with a right thigh bruise, the last thing Doc Rivers wanted to see in the final moments of the Celtics’ 86-77 win over Orlando yesterday was Garnett stretched out on the hardwood after taking a nasty fall and knocking his head against the floor.

Rondo steps in for Pierce as Celtics leader

It wasn’t the Rajon Rondo that everyone was used to. It wasn’t the pass first, second, and third point guard.

One happy holiday

The Celtics started yesterday without captain Paul Pierce, home recovering from a knee infection.

Celtics-Magic, Box

BOSTON (86) T.Allen 6-11 4-7 16, Garnett 3-9 4-4 10, Perkins 3-4 0-0 6, Rondo 7-18 3-7 17, R.Allen 5-12 6-7 18, Wallace 5-7 0-0 11, Scalabrine 1-4 0-0 3, S.Williams 0-1 0-0 0, House 1-6 3-3 5, Davis 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 31-73 20-28 86. ORLANDO (77) Pietrus 3-7 2-2 9, Lewis 5-14 6-7 19, Howard 1-7 3-4 5, ...

Strong defense helps Celtics top Magic 86-77

The Boston Celtics left the floor with the smallest of grins, hands raised in triumph, leaving the Orlando Magic's fans listening to a somber song by Elvis.

Pierce’s absence not huge pain for Celtics

When the Celtics made this trip last May, they were adjusting to season-ending knee injuries to Kevin Garnett and Leon Powe. After being eliminated from the NBA playoffs by the Orlando Magic in a seven-game series, the Celtics reinforced their bench and awaited Garnett’s recovery.

Magic thumbnails

■ When, where: Today, 2:30, at Amway Arena. ■ TV, radio: Ch. 5, WEEI (850).

Celtics' Paul Pierce could miss at least 2 weeks

Paul Pierce could miss at least two weeks because of an infected right knee, the severity of the injury catching the Boston Celtics by surprise.

Knee surgery shelves Pierce

The Celtics will be facing Orlando tomorrow without captain Paul Pierce, who is expected to miss the next two weeks after undergoing minor right knee surgery yesterday.

Bench may benefit from Pierce injury

Paul Pierce’s sudden and surprising right knee procedure is causing more of a stir outside the Celtics’ organization than in the front office.

Celtics F Pierce out 2 weeks with knee infection

Celtics forward Paul Pierce had fluid drained from his right knee Wednesday and will miss the next two weeks.

Hansbrough elbowing into role in NBA

Did the TD Garden gathering last night fully appreciate the magnitude of what they witnessed as the Celtics took on the Indiana Pacers?

Still a winning ticket: Garnett-less Celtics trip Pacers

The oddest part was not hearing his voice. Kevin Garnett wasn’t barking out assignments. He wasn’t yelling out screens. He wasn’t even on the Celtics’ bench for last night’s 103-94 win over the Indiana Pacers at TD Garden.

Celtics’ Garnett sits out vs. Pacers with thigh bruise

Kevin Garnett missed last night’s 103-94 win over the Pacers at TD Garden because of a right thigh bruise.

Celtics’ Pierce wakes up in the nick of time

It would have been a Blue Christmas without this one, and I promise that’s the end of the seasonal metaphors.

Celtics rally for 103-94 victory over Pacers

Paul Pierce is a shooter, so he does what shooters do and he thinks the way shooters think.

Pacers-Celtics, Box

INDIANA (94) Dunleavy 2-5 1-2 6, Murphy 9-17 4-4 24, Hibbert 2-8 2-4 6, Watson 6-13 3-4 18, D.Jones 2-8 4-5 8, Rush 5-7 1-2 15, Hansbrough 1-4 0-0 2, S.Jones 1-1 0-0 2, Ford 2-2 2-2 6, Head 3-9 1-1 7. Totals 33-74 18-24 94. BOSTON (103) Pierce 4-15 12-13 21, Wallace 3-8 2-2 9, Perkins 6-11 7-8 19, ...

KG is O-U-T with thigh bruise for Celtics

Kevin Garnett is out of the Boston Celtics' lineup with a bruised right thigh. Rasheed Wallace started at forward in Garnett's place Tuesday night against the Indiana Pacers. It's the first game Garnett has missed this season.

Rethinking thought process

Coach Doc Rivers noticed a subtle change in Paul Pierce’s approach while the team was in the midst of an 11-game winning streak.

Pacers thumbnails

(Not including last night’s game) ■ When, where: Tonight, 7:30, at TD Banknorth Garden.

Final tally? We went 6 for 10

As we approach the end of the decade, are you, the Boston sports fan, better off than you were 10 years ago? The correct answer is yes. Six parades speak for themselves.

Rondo passes up quite a chance

Rajon Rondo had 13 points and 15 assists in the Celtics’ 122-104 victory over Minnesota last night. But Rondo was regretting one of those assists after being informed that Paul Pierce had a chance to break a team record for 3-pointers without a miss.

Celtics fast out of the blocks, chop Timberwolves

The Celtics regained their winning form last night. They also rediscovered the formula for preserving themselves for the playoffs, producing their best first-half offense of the season in a 122-104 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Timberwolves’ Jefferson, Celtics’ Perkins at head of this class

There was a reason NBA commissioner David Stern pushed vigorously for the mandatory age limit for players to be eligible for the draft. There had been too many stories of high school players who weren’t ready for the NBA, overshadowing the success stories of Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady, and Kevin Garnett.

Timberwolves-Celtics, Box

MINNESOTA (104) Wilkins 7-15 2-5 18, Love 5-8 4-4 15, Jefferson 9-18 2-2 20, Flynn 8-15 4-4 21, Brewer 3-10 2-2 8, Jawai 0-2 0-0 0, Sessions 3-8 5-7 11, Pavlovic 0-5 0-0 0, Hollins 2-2 4-4 8, Ellington 1-5 1-1 3, Pecherov 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 38-90 24-29 104. BOSTON (122) Pierce 8-14 7-7 29, Garnett 4-5 2-2 10, ...

Celtics coast to 122-104 victory over Timberwolves

Paul Pierce wasn't going to let the Boston Celtics lose to another struggling team. Pierce scored 29 points, tying a franchise record by hitting all six of his 3-point attempts, and the Celtics beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 122-104 on Sunday night.

Snowstorm leaves 2 refs for Celtics-Wolves game

The Celtics and Minnesota Timberwolves played with two referees on Sunday night because the winter storm that blanketed the East Coast with snow prevented the third, Leon Wood, from making it to Boston.

Technical difficulties for Wallace

WALTHAM - Rasheed Wallace was not talking technicals yesterday. But Wallace’s coaches and teammates were weighing in on the subject, a day after Wallace was assessed two technical fouls and ejected in the first half of a 98-97 loss to Philadelphia.

Sixers snap Celtics' 11-game streak with 98-97 win

Talk about a quick turnaround. Days after snapping their own 12-game skid, the Philadelphia 76ers ended Boston's 11-game winning streak, beating the first-place Celtics 98-97 on Friday night on Elton Brand's tip-in with 7.7 seconds left.

Sixers snap Celtics' 11-game streak with 98-97 win

Talk about a quick turnaround. Days after snapping their own 12-game skid, the Philadelphia 76ers ended Boston's 11-game winning streak, beating the first-place Celtics 98-97 on Friday night on Elton Brand's tip-in with 7.7 seconds left.

Sixers snap Celtics' 11-game streak with 98-97 win

Talk about a quick turnaround. Days after snapping their own 12-game skid, the Philadelphia 76ers ended Boston's 11-game winning streak, beating the first-place Celtics 98-97 on Friday night on Elton Brand's tip-in with 7.7 seconds left.

Sixers snap Celtics' 11-game streak with 98-97 win

Talk about a quick turnaround. Days after snapping their own 12-game skid, the Philadelphia 76ers ended Boston's 11-game winning streak, beating the first-place Celtics 98-97 on Friday night on Elton Brand's tip-in with 7.7 seconds left.

Sixers snap Celtics' 11-game streak with 98-97 win

It's been a streak-busting week for the Philadelphia 76ers. Days after snapping their own 12-game skid, the 76ers ended Boston's run at 11 wins, beating the first-place Celtics 98-97 on Friday night on Elton Brand's tip-in with 7.7 seconds left.

Wallace’s ejection costly for Celtics

Coach Doc Rivers’s advice to his players on technical fouls is not to draw them late in the game. But Rivers might have to modify that guideline with Rasheed Wallace, who picked up two technicals and was ejected midway through the second quarter of a 98-97 loss to Philadelphia last night.

Celtics roll to a stop

Whatever the problems were, overconfidence had never been one of them. Slow starts had plagued the Celtics. So had poor rebounding. So had stretches in games that were more hollow than others. But never inflated ego.

Daniels shooting for a February return

A week after undergoing surgery on his left wrist, Marquis Daniels went in yesterday for an evaluation and to have stitches removed from his hand. He learned that the best-case scenario is a return to the court just before the All-Star break.

Sixers snap Celtics' 11-game streak with 98-97 win

It's been a streak-busting week for the Philadelphia 76ers. Days after snapping their own 12-game skid, the 76ers ended Boston's run at 11 wins, beating the first-place Celtics 98-97 on Friday night on Elton Brand's tip-in with 7.7 seconds left.

76ers-Celtics, Box

PHILADELPHIA (98) Iguodala 6-15 4-5 18, Young 4-13 1-2 9, Dalembert 2-7 0-0 4, Holiday 3-10 2-2 9, Green 6-13 3-3 16, Ivey 1-1 0-0 2, Brand 7-12 9-10 23, Speights 6-16 5-8 17, Kapono 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 35-87 24-30 98. BOSTON (97) Pierce 4-12 0-0 9, Garnett 5-14 11-11 21, Perkins 5-10 2-4 12, Rondo 5-8 3-6 13, ...

Signs should point to Rondo getting All-Star nod

Rajon Rondo trails Miami’s Dwyane Wade by more than 500,000 votes, so there is no chance he will be elected a starter for the Feb. 14 All-Star Game in Dallas. That doesn’t mean, however, that Rondo hasn’t been the best point guard in the Eastern Conference.

Big Three have company

This season has marked the emergence of the two youngest Celtics starters, Kendrick Perkins and Rajon Rondo, according to president of basketball operations Danny Ainge.

They’re getting up there

A suspicion that the Celtics might be feeling their age this season appeared to have been confirmed because they struggled to rebound against especially athletic opponents earlier this month.

Celtics send rookie guard Hudson to NBADL team

The Boston Celtics are sending rookie guard Lester Hudson to Maine of the NBA Development League.

Pierce leads balanced Celtics to 11th straight win

Down the stretch, the Boston Celtics' experience meant the difference against the youth of the Memphis Grizzlies.

They pick and choose

The pick-and-roll is among the most basic of basketball maneuvers. But it is also difficult to defend, especially when Celtics Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce are executing the play.

Experience has the final sway

This is pretty much how it’s going to be every game for the Celtics. The NBA’s upstarts are waiting impatiently to take a shot at Big Brother, hoping to catch the Celtics slipping, ragged, or just plain below par for a night.

Hot tip sends Celtics to 11th straight win

The Celtics’ pick-and-roll play nearly turned into a picked-off-and-lose play last night. But Ray Allen grabbed a deflected pass and sank a 3-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer with 17.5 seconds left to clinch a 110-105 victory over the Grizzlies, helping the Celtics conclude a three-game road trip with their 11th successive victory.

Pierce leads balanced Celtics to 11th straight win

Paul Pierce scored 19 points, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo added 18 apiece and the Boston Celtics won their 11th straight game, beating the Memphis Grizzlies 110-105 on Monday night.

Celtics-Grizzlies, Box

BOSTON (110) Pierce 5-11 6-8 19, Garnett 5-7 3-3 13, Perkins 6-10 1-1 13, Rondo 8-12 2-3 18, R.Allen 6-13 1-2 18, Wallace 6-15 2-2 15, S.Williams 0-0 1-2 1, House 4-7 0-0 9, T.Allen 2-5 0-0 4, Scalabrine 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 42-80 16-21 110. MEMPHIS (105) Gay 7-17 9-9 23, Randolph 7-14 6-6 20, Gasol 6-12 3-4 15, ...

Rondo giving it his best shot

CHICAGO - Almost smothered amid the re-emergence of Kevin Garnett and the Celtics’ 10-game winning streak is the offensive maturity of Rajon Rondo , who three weeks ago struggled mightily with his free throw and perimeter shooting.