Celtics notch 5th straight win: Rajon Rondo had 23 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists to help lead the Boston Celtics to a 104-87 rout of the Phoenix Suns in front of a packed house at the TD BankNorth Garden. Ray Allen added 20 points and Kevin Garnett had 16 points and 8 rebounds. Paul Pierce chipped in with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists. Glen “Big Baby” Davis came off the bench to pull down a team-high 9 rebounds to go along with 9 points. Shaquille O’Neal led the Suns with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Louis Amundson added 13 points and Steve Nash chipped in with 12 points. The Celtics now head to Florida for a two-game road trip against the Miami Heat on Wednesday night and the Orlando Magic on Thursday night. [NBA.com]

Celtics win 4th straight: Former UConn Husky Ray Allen had 25 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a 105-85 win over the New Jersey Nets for the second straight game to give the Celtics a 4-game winning streak. The Celtics had 6 players in double digits as Paul Pierce and Eddie House both had 13 points, Kevin Garnett and Leon Powe both had 12 and Brian Scalabrine had 11 points. Garnett added 10 rebounds and Rajon Rondo had another great night with 14 assists to go along with 8 points. Brook Lopez led the Nets with 28 points and 10 rebounds while Jarvis Hayes added 15. Another former Husky, Josh Boone, didn’t score in 4 minutes of action. The Celtics return to action on Monday night when they host Shaquille O’Neal and the Phoenix Suns at 8 PM. [ESPN.com]

The Boston Celtics look like they have put their recent 4-game losing streak in the past as they beat the New Jersey Nets 118-86 in front of a packed house at the T.D. BankNorth Garden.

The win for the Celtics is their third straight and raises their record to 32-9 which is good for third best in the Eastern Conference. The Nets fall to 19-20.

Paul Pierce was on fire during the third quarter as he scored 18 points, on 5-5 shooting from 3-point land to finish with 22 points. Kevin Garnett added 20 points and 9 rebounds while both former UConn Husky Ray Allen and Glen “Big Baby’ Davis chipped in with 12 points. Mr Assist, Rajon Rondo, had 12 assists to go along with 11 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals. Eddie House came off the bench to add 10 points for Doc Rivers squad.

The Nets were led Devin Harris who had 17 points. A trio of Nets, Ryan Anderson, Brook Lopez and Keyon Dooling added 13 points. Another former Husky, Josh Boone, had 3 points and 4 rebounds in 14 minutes for the Nets.

The Celtics had a 10 point lead at halftime but behind Pierce, they put up a 37-point third quarter to break the game open.

These same two teams will meet again on Saturday afternoon in New Jersey at 1 PM.

New Jersey Nets @ Boston Celtics 1.14.09 box score

Celtics Score Team Record 22 Points in OT: Paul Pierce had a season-high 39 points as he led the Boston Celtics to an 115-109 overtime win over the Toronto Raptors in front of a packed house at the T.D. BankNorth Garden. Kevin Garnett had 20 points and 12 rebounds while Ray Allen had 12 points. Brian Scalabrine, starting for the injured Kendrick Perkins, had 11 points and Leon Powe came off the bench to add 10 points. Andrea Bargnani led the Raptors with 23 points and Chris Bosh had 18 points and 11 rebounds. Roko Ukic added 16 points in the losing cause. The newest member of the Boston Red Sox, John Smoltz, was on hand and a received a standing ovation from the crowd. [Celtics.com]

Celtics Halt Losing Skid At 4 Games: Ray Allen broke out of his funk with 36 points, including 8 three-pointers, to help the Boston Celtics beat the Toronto Raptors 94-88 in Toronto. The win for the Celtics ends a 4-game losing streak.  Rajon Rondo added 14 points and 11 assists while Paul Pierce had 11 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds. Kevin Garnett chipped in with 10 points and 11 rebounds and Glen “Big Baby” Davis pulled down 11 rebounds as well. Andrea Bargnani led the Raptors with 17 points and both Jamario Moon and Chris Bosh aded 15 points to the cause. These same two teams will be back at it again tomorrow night in Boston at 7:30 PM. [ESPN.com]

Celtics Losing Streak Hits 4 Games: LeBron James had 38 points to lead the Cleveland Cavaliers past the Boston Celtics 98-83 in Cleveland. The loss for the Celtics (29-9) is their fourth straight and the win gives Cleveland the best record in the East at 29-6. Anderson Varejao had 14 points and Mo Williams 13 points while Daniel Gibson added 10 for the LeBron’s. Kevin Garnett led the Celtics with 18 points and 15 rebounds while Kendrick Perkins had 13. Ray Allen chipped in with 13 points and Paul Pierce had 12. Rajon Rando led all players with 13 assists in the game. The Celtics still hold a 10 game lead in the Atlantic Division and will try to right the ship Sunday afternoon in Toronto against the Raptors. [ESPN.com]

Giddens, Walker Return to Boston: With the Boston Celtics on a 3-game losing streak right now, they have called up rookies J.R. Giddens and Bill Walker from the Utah Flash of the NBDL. [WEEI.com]

Celtics Spank Wizards: After a 1-3 road trip, you knew the Boston Celtics were going to take out their frustrations on someone and unfortunately for the Washington Wizards it was them as the Celtics whipped them 108-83. Paul Pierce led the way for the Celtics with 26 points while Ray Allen and Eddie House both added 11 points. Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo and all chipped in with 10 points apiece with Rondo adding 14 assists. The Wizards were led by Nick Young’s 15 points and Antwain Jamison’s 14 points. Former UConn Husky Caron Butler added 8 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals. The Celtics will be back in action on Sunday night when they travel to the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden, to take on the New York Knicks. [Celtics.com]

Celtics not finding the west to their liking: One game after beating the Sacramento Kings by 45 points, the Boston Celtics took on the Portland Trail Blazers and fell 91-86. The Blazers, who were playing without their star Brandon Roy, were led by Steve Blake’s 21 points. LaMarcus Aldridge had 20 and Greg Oden had 13 points and 11 rebounds. Paul Pierce led the Green with a game-high 28 points and Kevin Garnett chipped in with 17 points and 8 rebounds. Rajon Rondo had 13 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists while Ray Allen rounded out the C’s in double-digits with 12 points. The Celtics will return home after a 1-3 road trip to take on former UConn Husky Caron Butler and the Washington Wizards Friday night at the T.D. BankNorth Garden. [ESPN.com]

Celtics Start A New Streak: The Boston Celtics made sure that their two-game losing streak stood at just 2 games as they pounded the Sacramento Kings 108-63 at ARCO Arena in Sacramento. Kevin Garnett led the way for the Celtics with 21 points and added 11 rebounds in just 23 minutes. Ray Allen rebounded from a poor performance on Friday night with 19 points while Eddie House came off the bench to chip in 15 points. Paul Pierce added 13 points and Kendrick Perkins added 12 rebounds to go along with 11 points. John Salmons led the Kings with 11 points. The Celtics (28-4) close out 2008 in Portland on Tuesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers. [ESPN.com]