Boston 100, Washington 94

[recap] [box score]

At least we can still beat the Wizards.

It wasn't as easy as you'd hope -- the Celtics coughed up all of a 15-point third quarter. But in an early Sunday game, on the road, missing two starters for much of the game, and given the team's early-season struggles, any win is a good win.

And yes, I said missing "starters," plural. Rajon R-ndo sat for the second straight game with his injured wrist, and Ray Allen left in the second quarter with an injury that the Boston Globe's Gary Washburn kept referring to as a "jammed" ankle, whatever the hell that is.

This game was won on the back of Paul Pierce, who matched his uniform number and obliterated his season-high with 34 points. This is the third time the Celtics have played the Wizards this season, and in the second matchup, Pierce was struggling offensively until early in the second quarter, when Washington coach Flip Saunders put Chris Singleton on him. Pierce looked offended that someone would dare put a rookie on him, no matter how strong that particularly rookie's defensive reputation happens to be.

Singleton has since moved into the starting lineup (and deservedly so; the kid is the most versatile defender I've ever seen at the college level and should be a really nice player for them), and Pierce wasted little time going to work. Eventually, Nick Young and Jordan Crawford entered the torture chamber and had similarly little success in stopping Pierce's familiar array of drives and clever maneuvering for mid-range jumpers. The Captain was coolly efficient, accumulating his bounty on just 15 shots, making 12 of 15 free throws, and dishing out ten assists. He ended Sunday's game just two rebounds shy of a triple-double.

Pierce was the leader, but he had a little help. Kevin Garnett missed his first three shots, but went 7-for-7 from the second quarter on, including two huge buckets down the stretch. On both of those, Garnett craftily used a ball fake to shake his defender, perhaps taking advantage of his reputation as someone who passes more than he should. Both hoops (a thunderous dunk and a 21-foot jumper) pushed a three-point Boston lead to five, helping ensure that the Wizards never took possession of the basketball with a chance to tie for the final 4:46.

KG finished with 17 points, and joining him in double figures were Mickael Pietrus (14 points) and Brandon Bass (13) off the bench. Bass had what has become a fairly typical game for him in a Boston uniform, hitting about half of the jumpers he takes and grabbing a bunch of rebounds. Pietrus, who probably would move into the starting lineup if Allen has to miss any further time, took as many two-point field goals as three-point field goals, the first game in seven as a Celtic in which his threes haven't outnumbered his twos. (Thirty-four of his 44 shot attempts this season have been from behind the arc.) It's good to see a little depth in his offensive game -- we need him to be more than just a shooter.

Avery Bradley took several steps backward after his solid performance on Friday, going 1-for-8 with six turnovers in more than 41 minutes of court time. (He did have seven assists, but I don't remember him doing a lot of creating for others -- sometimes guys just get assists by swinging the ball to open shooters.) He also did little to stop John Wall, who nearly matched Pierce's numbers with 27 points, ten rebounds, and seven assists. Stopping Wall is no easy task, but Bradley earns his paycheck on the defensive end of the court and he didn't seem to bother Wall at all. His backup, E'Twaun Moore, wasn't any more effective -- or any less ineffective, I should say -- than he's been all season, and so point guard is going to remain a concern for as long as R-ndo and Keyon Dooling are out with injuries.

It's a tough week for the Celtics, with the Magic visiting Monday, a return date in Orlando on Thursday, back home for the Pacers on Friday, and then the Cavs in the Garden on Sunday. The Magic haven't played since beating the Lakers on Friday, but they've got five games this week, including a four-in-five stretch, with Boston being the front end of both back-to-backs, so we'll see if Stan Van Gundy manages his guys' minutes bit this week.

Chris Wilcox's availability is rarely noteworthy, but against Dwight Howard, Boston will need as many bodies and fouls as possible. Wilcox hasn't played since January 13th due to a sore calf. I have no idea if Wilcox will be available at all this week, but I'd be surprised if Greg Stiemsma could guard Howard for more than eight minutes of game time without fouling out.