You Can't Stop The Celtics, You Can Only Hope to Contain Them

You know things are going well for the Celtics when Kris Humphries comes out of mothballs and off the bench to score a season-high 18 points with seven rebounds as Boston (9-12 overall, 5-5 home) beat Denver (11-8 overall, 5-6 away) 106-98 tonight at TD Garden. They maintained their spot atop the woeful Atlantic Division where nobody is even close to .500. Woo!

The Celtics have beaten up on some really bad teams so far this season but haven't notched many wins against playoff-caliber opponents. Tonight qualifies as a solid victory since even if the Nuggets don't make the postseason in the far superior Western Conference, they are a good team.

Of course, it helps when the C's are spotted a 14-0 lead right off the bat. Boston led from start to finish, by as much as 27 (42-15 early second quarter) and as little as three (76-73 late third quarter). Jordan Crawford (game-high 22 points, 8 assists) is playing the best basketball of his strange career. Avery Bradley had 18 points as well, Jeff Green scored 15 and Brandon Bass added 14 points, eight rebounds and three blocks.

Ty Lawson paced Denver with 20 points. J.J. Hickson had 17 points and seven rebounds, Randy Foye scored 12 points while former Celtic Nate Robinson (11 points), 90-year-old Andre Miller (10 points) and Timofey (that's really how it's spelled) Mozgov (10 points, 6 rebounds) all had double-figures off the bench.

In their best quarter of the season, Boston outscored Denver 39-14 in the first which was enough to carry them to another improbable victory. The Nuggets outscored the Celts 83-67 in the final three quarters.

The C's shot 7.6% better from the field (51.8-44.2), they dished out 14 more assists (25-11) and had five less turnovers (14-9) than the Nuggets.

Boston gets its first up close look at the car crashes better known as the Knicks (5-13, 4th in Atlantic Division) and Nets (5-14, 5th in Atlantic Division) over the next few days. They are in New York on Sunday afternoon (12, CSN)-that should get monster ratings going up against the NFL-and then they are in Brooklyn on Tuesday (7:30, CSN).

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While You Were Falling Asleep Watching The Oscars, The Celtics Lost In Portland 92-86

I wish I could tell you that you missed a classic Celtics game tonight (assuming you didn't tune in) but like The Oscars, it left me with an unsettled feeling as Boston (29-27, 9-18 away) lost 92-86 to Portland (26-30, 18-9 home) at the Rose Garden. PS the Blazers had come in with a seven-game losing streak, ugh.

One of the reasons, besides the Western Conference being loaded, that Portland will likely miss out on the playoffs this season is that their bench is horrid. On the other hand, their starters are very underrated. Against the Celts, all they needed was double-figures from all five starters to get the win. Wesley Matthews led Portland with a game-high 24 points (five 3-pointers), Nicolas Batum added 18 points and six rebounds, LaMarcus Aldridge scored his typical soft 16 points, rookie sensation Damian Lillard put up 12 points, six rebounds and six assists while J.J. Hickson had the game's lone double-double (11 points, 11 rebounds).

Paul Pierce (23 points, 8 assists, 7 rebounds) and Kevin Garnett (20 points, 9 rebounds) played great, the issue was that the rest of Boston's team was nowhere to be seen for the most part. Brandon Bass had 11 points and five rebounds while Jeff Green scored 11 points off the bench. The rest of the squad combined for 21 points.

Portland was in control the whole way, leading 27-21 after the first quarter and 49-42 at halftime. The only good quarter by the Celtics (25-22) got them back in it in the third but the Blazers made enough plays in the fourth (21-19) to break that ugly losing streak.

When you look at the box score, it's easy to realize why the Blazers came out on top in the end. They hit five more 3-pointers (7-2), three more free throws (15-12), grabbed 11 more rebounds (47-36) and dished out five more assists (21-16). The Celtics made five more steals (9-4) and scored 12 more fast break points (19-7) which seems to be the only reason it was so close.

The C's knew they had to have this game because it's hard to see them winning tomorrow night (9 p.m., CSN) in Utah since the Jazz (31-25, 3rd in Northwest Division) are a good team that always enjoys a distinct advantage at good old EnergySolutions Arena (part of me just died typing that). The Jazz are 21-6 at home this season.

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Who Needs Rajon Rondo Anyway (Ducks)?

It happens so rarely these days that you have to enjoy it when the Celtics throw somebody a good old fashioned beating. Tonight's victim was the Trailblazers as Portland (6-10, 2-7 away) came to TD Garden and was humbled 96-78 by Boston (9-7, 5-4 home).

The funny parts about this blowout is that A) Rajon Rondo was serving his first game of the two-game suspension for his melee with Kris Humphries on Wednesday and B) the Blazers had lost to the Wizards (their first win of the season) on Wednesday. With those facts, we can deduce that Rondo is not important to the Celtics anymore and Portland is by far the worst team in the NBA. Haha just kidding.

The two players that have been the biggest disappointments through 15 games stepped up for one night at least. Jeff Green had a season-high 19 points off the bench while Courtney Lee took over point guard duties and turned in 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Jason Terry scored 17 points while Paul Pierce (12 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists) and Kevin Garnett (10 points, 5 rebounds) played 27 and 23 minutes respectively-the most important number of the game. Jared Sullinger added nine points and eight rebounds while Leandro Barbosa scored nine as well. Boston's bench took advantage of the extra garbage time, outscoring Portland 41-22.

I have a feeling it's going to be a long season for the Blazers and their superb fans. Portland has LaMarcus Aldridge (23 points, 8 rebounds) and who else? That is no way to survive in the Western Conference. J.J. Hickson and rookie Meyers Leonard were the only other Blazers in double figures, they both scored 11.

For the third time in a month, the C's will face the Bucks (7-7, 3-4 home), tomorrow night (8:30 p.m., CSN) at the Bradley Center. Milwaukee won 99-88 on November 2 in Boston's home opener then the Celts returned the favor on November 10 (96-92) in Milwaukee. Without Rondo, on the road, in the second game of a back-to-back means that the Celtics will have their hands full.

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Perk returns as the Celtics eviscerate hapless Cavaliers

As long as they took care of business last night at home against the Cleveland Cavaliers (a nightmare of a team that had lost 17 in a row), the Boston Celtics would be able to punch in and check out on time in one of the most pointless contests of the regular season.

However, this largely meaningless exhibition took on plenty of meaning as right before game-time Twitter blew up with the surprise announcement that Celtics center Kendrick Perkins would return to the TD Garden parquet.

Riding the wave of emotion and momentum with their true center back, the Celts (34-10) rolled to an easy 112-95 win over Cleveland (8-37).

Semih Erden (8 rebounds) started but a few minutes into the game, Celtics head coach Doc Rivers put in Perk and he rightfully received a standing ovation. He only played 17 minutes but Perkins put up a respectable seven points, six rebounds and three assists.

Everybody knows that Perk's game is about defense, toughness and presence inside, things that usually don't pop out on a box score or in stat sheets. One of the great unknowns in Boston sports from the last decade is whether the Celtics would have won Game 6 in last season's NBA Finals or Game 7 with a healthy Perk.

Whatever the case, it was great to see him back and contributing. It was the first time this season that Boston's starting five was intact and it was thanks to Kendrick's remarkable rehabilitation from a torn ACL.

Other than Rajon Rondo (11 points, 10 assists, 4 assists), the rest of the Celtics veterans got to sit for much of the second half. Paul Pierce scored 24 points, Ray Allen added 18 points and Kevin Garnett had 10 points.

The cumulative effect of having a healthy starting five was that Boston's bench suddenly looks much more versatile and deep (funny how that works). Nate Robinson and Glen Davis both scored 11 points while Von Wafer had 10 points and Luke Harangody notched eight points.

Marquis Daniels was out due to a family emergency but he's expected back tomorrow night.

I would never say this but you almost have to feel bad for the Cavaliers. Yes, LeBron had the right to leave their miserable city but he really left the franchise in a bad place that will be tough to crawl out of for years.

A guy named Christian Eyenga (that I'd never heard of) led Cleveland with 15 points. Ramon Sessions added 14 points and seven assists, J.J. Hickson had 12 points and 17 rebounds while Antawn Jamison put up 11 points.

Manny Harris scored 14 points off the bench for the Cavs while Joey Graham and Samardo Samuels each had 10 points.

The Celtics depart for a tricky four-game West Coast trip beginning tomorrow night at Portland. After that they go to Phoenix on Friday, face the Lakers for the first time since the Finals on Sunday then end it in Sacramento on Tuesday. 3-1 is my hope but 2-2 is definitely possible.

The J.J. Hickson/Byron Scott era truly begins in Cleveland

After Tuesday's spectacle vs. the Heat on Opening Night, the Celtics predictably succumbed to the trap game in Cleveland last night.

At Quicken Loans Arena, the Cavs (1-0) began the post-LeBron era with a nice comeback win over the Celts (1-1). Over the course of the season, one of the biggest story lines to focus on for Boston will be how they hold up over back-to-back nights (a ubiquitous part of NBA life).

Mo Williams was out with a groin injury and Antawn Jamison was coming off the bench so I guess the newest marketable star in Cleveland is J.J. Hickson? He did play well, with a game-high 21 points.

Daniel Gibson (haha Boobie) added 16 points off the bench, Ramon Sessions had 14 points while Jamario Moon, Anthony Parker and Ryan Hollins all had 10 points.

Rajon Rondo led the C's with 18 points (never a good sign) while Glen Davis had 14 points off the bench. Looks like the few younger guys on Boston were less fatigued as Paul Pierce (13 points), Ray Allen (12 points) and Kevin Garnett (9 points, 15 rebounds) were not as sharp as they played against Miami.

Boston was up 23-21 after the first quarter and 47-46 at the half. With a decent third quarter (26-22), the C's looked poised to go 2-0 but they had a meltdown in the fourth quarter (27-14).

Even without Rasheed Wallace, odds are the Celtics will be the clubhouse leader in the NBA for technical fouls. They got off to a rousing start last night with two in crunch time (fourth quarter) by Shaq (7 points) and Nate Robinson (8 points). It all started because Robinson kneed Hollins in the balls and Shaq argued the call after Nate picked up a technical foul. Refs are quicker to pull the trigger now on technicals and the Celts will have to adjust somehow since they love to run their mouth after every play/call.

Boston comes home tomorrow night to face the New York Knicks. A team that they've owned in the last couple years but they'll get their first look at Amare Stoudemire.