The Boston Celtics (38–13) lost on the road 94–89 to the Charlotte Bobcats (22–29) in a hard-fought, scrappy game on Monday that went down to the final seconds.
The loss comes on the heels of Boston’s home win against the Orlando Magic on Sunday. Boston—who still sit atop the Eastern Conference over the Miami Heat—are 2–7 in back-to-backs this season when the second game is on the road, showing the toll that a rigorous schedule can take on even the best teams.
Monday’s game was well matched throughout, with several lead changes and much of the game within a single possession.
Charlotte’s athleticism paid off against Boston’s experience in the end, with Charlotte getting huge contributions from their young bench and running away with the game down the stretch.
Shaun Livingston and Gerald Henderson contributed 18 points and 15 points apiece from the Bobcats bench, second only to veteran starter Gerald Wallace who scored 19 points and grabbed 16 rebounds.
Livingston stepped up to fill the shoes of starter Stephen Jackson, who was ejected in the second quarter to the ire of fans in the nearly full Time Warner Cable Arena after picking up his second technical foul. Jackson had been Charlotte’s leading scorer with 11 points when he got ejected.
Boston was led by Ray Allen with 25 points and Paul Pierce with 22 points, and Rajon Rondo had a double-double with 10 points and 14 assists—typical for the NBA assist leader.
The Celtics came out shooting well in the first quarter but fell into a slump in a very scrappy second quarter where Charlotte outrebounded and outran them for fast-break points. The half finished 51–50 to Charlotte.
Boston built a small lead in the early minutes of the third quarter and maintained it into the hotly contested fourth quarter until Charlotte broke through in the end.
The game came down to foul shots with Boston having a few chances to tie the score in the final minute. But some good shots by Allen and Pierce wouldn’t fall.
Boston now has two days to rest before facing off against their long-time rivals the Los Angeles Lakers at the TD Garden on Thursday.
Boston came away with the win in their first matchup of the season against the Lakers in LA last month. The two teams hadn’t played since Game 7 of the 2009–2010 NBA Finals, which the Lakers won.
Look for some prime basketball action on Thursday as Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol look to even this season’s score.
The loss comes on the heels of Boston’s home win against the Orlando Magic on Sunday. Boston—who still sit atop the Eastern Conference over the Miami Heat—are 2–7 in back-to-backs this season when the second game is on the road, showing the toll that a rigorous schedule can take on even the best teams.
Monday’s game was well matched throughout, with several lead changes and much of the game within a single possession.
Charlotte’s athleticism paid off against Boston’s experience in the end, with Charlotte getting huge contributions from their young bench and running away with the game down the stretch.
Shaun Livingston and Gerald Henderson contributed 18 points and 15 points apiece from the Bobcats bench, second only to veteran starter Gerald Wallace who scored 19 points and grabbed 16 rebounds.
Livingston stepped up to fill the shoes of starter Stephen Jackson, who was ejected in the second quarter to the ire of fans in the nearly full Time Warner Cable Arena after picking up his second technical foul. Jackson had been Charlotte’s leading scorer with 11 points when he got ejected.
Boston was led by Ray Allen with 25 points and Paul Pierce with 22 points, and Rajon Rondo had a double-double with 10 points and 14 assists—typical for the NBA assist leader.
The Celtics came out shooting well in the first quarter but fell into a slump in a very scrappy second quarter where Charlotte outrebounded and outran them for fast-break points. The half finished 51–50 to Charlotte.
Boston built a small lead in the early minutes of the third quarter and maintained it into the hotly contested fourth quarter until Charlotte broke through in the end.
The game came down to foul shots with Boston having a few chances to tie the score in the final minute. But some good shots by Allen and Pierce wouldn’t fall.
Boston now has two days to rest before facing off against their long-time rivals the Los Angeles Lakers at the TD Garden on Thursday.
Boston came away with the win in their first matchup of the season against the Lakers in LA last month. The two teams hadn’t played since Game 7 of the 2009–2010 NBA Finals, which the Lakers won.
Look for some prime basketball action on Thursday as Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol look to even this season’s score.
