Sorry Mormons

Full disclosure: since a certain football team was trying to go 16-0 last night, I didn't see much of the Celtics game at the Jazz. I flipped back and forth a couple times during commercials and it seemed like an exciting contest but I couldn't focus on it for very long. Turns out, Boston (25-3) came away from Salt Lake City with a 104-98 win over the Jazz.

Paul Pierce somehow was scoreless in the first half but woke up in time in the second half, scoring a game-high 24 points to go along with six rebounds, four assists and two steals. Ray Allen was another standout, scoring 23 points with four boards and three assists. KG had 15 points, nine rebounds and three assists while Kendrick Perkins (11 points, 9 rebounds) and Tony Allen (10 points) were the other double-figure scorers. Eddie House had nine points off the bench and Rajon Rondo had seven points, seven assists, three steals and three boards.

Utah (16-16) led 56-49 at the half but only by two heading into the fourth. As expected Deron Williams (22 points, 11 assists but 7 turnovers) dominated Rondo. The guy is a beast, easily one of the best point guards in the game. Meanwhile, the Jazz had five other guys in double figures: Carlos Boozer (19 points, 11 rebounds), Mehmet Okur (14 points), C.J. Miles (11), Matt Harpring (11) and Paul Millsap (10). Andrei Kirilenko didn't play, he was out with a strained bicep, possibly caused when he was applying his hair gel, who knows?

Utah shot 54.8% from the field but the Celtics survived a 46.3% shooting night by making more threes (10-5) and more free throws (10-5). They also owned the boards, 41-30.

Tonight is the last game of their four game West trip. Going 3-1 would be perfectly acceptable but at this point, you want 4-0. It won't be easy as the Lakers have been playing great basketball lately. Andrew Bynum is quickly becoming a star and Kobe Bryant is the best basketball player on the planet, no question. It should all make for an awesome atmosphere as this used to be the biggest rivalry in the NBA. Expect the usual celebrity-infested crowd in Los Angeles to be filled with even more A-listers than usual. Maybe they'll be filming a scene for Entourage with a cameo by Brian Scalabrine?