Paul Pierce Pushes Celtics Past the Rockets in Overtime

Towards the end of the game, Pierce didn't look like himself with his headband knocked off for the majority of overtime, but in terms of play, he certainly looked like himself. Pierce scored 30 points, eleven of which came from the free throw line (he shot 11-12 from the charity stripe). And, like the whole Celtics team, Pierce played his best in the fourth quarter and overtime to lead the Celtics to a 97-92 win.

Because through four quarters, it was about as ugly of a game as you'll see. The Celtics couldn't buy a bucket or a rebound (they got out-rebounded 57-38) and watched a ten point lead turn into a ten point deficit. 

In fact, the game should have never gone to overtime had Rondo made the simplest and most fundamental shots in basketball. Whoever Rondo's coach was growing up must have neglected to teach Rondo one of the most basic aspects of the game. When you are on the left side, you take a lefty-layup because he inexplicably tried to shoot a wide open layup with his right hand, while he was on the left side. He bricked it. The game went to overtime. 

And even in overtime, the Celtics didn't play perfect, Garnett went 0-2 from the line with a minute left and Pierce failed to bring the ball up the court in under eight seconds. But, they still played much better in overtime and the end of the fourth quarter to get the W. 

As always, the Celtics led the way with their defense and that was really what won the game for the Celtics tonight. The catalyst for the late comeback was the pressing defense that the Celtics went into. With their defense, they forced the Rockets to start their offense late in the shot clock and didn't allow them to get easy shots. 

This momentum carried itself into overtime and the result was the Celtics fifth straight win. Any win is a good win for the Celtics, and a five game winning streak couldn't come at a better time than right before the impending road-trip that the Celtics face, with nine of their next ten games on the road. Hopefully, they will be able to carry this momentum into the road trip.