Celtics Rob Heat in Miami

WOW.

The Celtics were down 11 points with 7 1/2 minutes remaining in the game when their defense and shot selection stepped up. Tying the game up at 99 with 5.5 seconds left, the Celtics had the ball with a chance to win the game. The in-bounds pass to Ray Allen near mid-court was then stolen by Dwayne Wade and he brought it down the court for a slam with .6 seconds left. Wade left the Celtics too much time...

Doc Rivers drew up a beauty in the huddle. Paul Pierce passed the ball in and the Miami D focused on Ray Allen, thinking he would get the shot attempt from beyond the arc for the win. However, Pierce lofted up a precise pass to Rajon Rondo that he would catch mid-air and tip home off of the backboard for a stunning basket to tie the game.

The Celtics found themselves in an overtime battle with the Heat, but Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo would step up in the OT period to help the Celtics steal a game in Miami 112-106.

• The Captain Paul Pierce returned from a 5 game absence and played 43 minutes. Pierce hit only 4 of 12 field goals, but was efficient from the line going 8 of 9 on his way to 17 points, 6 boards, 5 assists (6 turnovers), 2 steals, and a block. Nice to see his knee hold up with the heavy minutes that were demanded out of him last night.
• Rajon Rondo, who missed the Celtics' previous game with a hamstring injury, played 50 minutes last night. Rondo simply took over in this win. Not only did he get up for the game tying layup, but Rondo scored 25 points on 9 of 12 shooting and 7 of 8 from the line. He was huge in the 4th quarter an OT.
• Kendrick Perkins, who was questionable coming in with food poisoning, played very efficient basketball as usual. Perk had 20 points, 10 boards, 3 assists, and 3 blocks on the evening.
• Ray Allen found his shot down the stretch tonight. Allen hit 3 of his 4 three point attempts on the night and had 22 points while adding 4 steals. Ray Ray was almost the goat after fumbling the in-bounds pass at the end of regulation, but his play loomed large in OT.
• Rasheed Wallace fouled out in regulation, but not before playing good ball down the stretch. With the Celtics trailing, Sheed stepped up with some critical shots inlcuding a three. His final line read 16 points (6-11 FGs, 3-5 3 PTs), 9 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and a block. He continues to fill in admirably for Kevin Garnett and will continue to until we see the Big Ticket on the court.
• The bench was short and weak tonight. Tony Allen played 19 efficient minutes tonight backing up both guard spots without Eddie House (flu) chipping in 9 points. However, Scal, Shelden, and Baby did not contribute much.

Amazingly, the Celtics attempted 67 shots tonight while hitting 36 of them (53.7%), but allowed Miami an insane 98 shots but allowed them to hit only 40 (40.8%), The refs blew their whistle a lot on the evening, and the C's hit 13 more free throws than the Heat in 14 more attempts.

Down big in the 4th, the C's came back and finished big on the road. Nice to see them persevere with the questionable outlook coming into the game with injury and health concerns. Things don't get easier as the C's head north to the ATL for a bout with the Hawks on Friday. It will be the first of two meetings in three games with the Hawks who appear to be for real in the East.

NOTE:

• The Celtics waived reserve PG Lester Hudson before the game. Hudson was our boy here at Inside Boston Sports, but his contract was set to become guaranteed if he lasted one more day on the roster. Despite a quadruple-double in college, the C's deemed his play could not translate to the NBA. Best of luck catching on somewhere else Lester. The Celtics' roster sits at 14 which is one below the NBA maximum. Look for the C's to be in the market for a veteran backup PG. Tyronn Lue (Celtics assistant coach) anyone?