Washington Wizards vs. Boston Celtics: Live Score, Highlights and Reaction
Rajon Rondo had a triple-double, Jeff Green scored 25 points and the Boston Celtics withstood a furious Washington Wizards rally to win their third straight game, 101-93, at TD Garden Sunday afternoon.
The Celtics led by as much as 25 in this contest, but as has been an issue for them all season, they had trouble holding the lead.
The Wizards closed to within one point late in the game, and former Celtic great Paul Pierce missed a wide open three-pointer that would have put Washington up two with under a minute to go.
Avery Bradley then came down and buried a corner triple with 37 seconds left, putting Boston up four and squelching the Wizards' comeback attempt.
Washington, which shot only 37 percent from the floor, got back into the game thanks to a three-point shooting barrage from Rasual Butler. Butler, who led the Wizards with 22 points, buried four of his six treys in the final period. Pierce also hit a couple over the last 12 minutes.
Unfortunately for Randy Wittman's club, John Wall, Bradley Beal and Marcin Gortat went a combined 12-for-43 from the field.
The Celtics were able to force the Wizards into 19 turnovers, six of them coming from Wall. They also got an outstanding performance from Rondo, who posted 13 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists and three steals.
Marcus Thornton was key off the bench, racking up 21 points in 17 minutes.
Boston shot only 41 percent overall, but it made eight of its 17 attempts from deep and went a solid 21-of-26 from the free-throw line. Both Tyler Zeller and Green made crucial foul shots down the stretch to help the C's ward off the Washington rally.
The Celtics and Wizards will meet again Monday night, this time at the Verizon Center in Washington.
