Celtics Finally Decide That It's More Fun To Be On The Winning Side Of A Blowout

We can't get too ahead of ourselves after one night, facing a team without its two best players but let's be honest: doesn't it feel good to enjoy a blowout win for once? Something that has been few and far between all season for the Celtics.

Boston (15-17, 10-6 home) snapped a four-game losing streak (all losses had been by double-digits) with a 94-75 win against Indiana (19-14, 8-11 away) tonight at TD Garden. I wouldn't say this was a must-win but given how bad they've played and their caliber of upcoming opponents, they really needed a complete team effort.

The Celtics notched their largest margin of victory of 2012-13 while holding their opponent to the lowest total this season vs. the C's. Danny Granger and George Hill were both inactive for the Pacers, a stroke of good luck for the Celts-something which they've sorely lacked among other things.

Kevin Garnett (18 points, 7 rebounds) was wrongfully ejected for an inadvertent elbow of Tyler Hansbrough (19 points) with 8:23 left in the fourth quarter but it didn't matter since Boston's defense had already turned out the lights on Indiana. At that point, the C's were up 78-55.

Rajon Rondo had 18 points, seven assists, five rebounds and two steals, Paul Pierce put up 13 points, six rebounds and five assists while Courtney Lee (13 points, 5 rebounds) had arguably his best game as a Celtic. Jared Sullinger added 10 rebounds before he fouled out and Brandon Bass grabbed eight rebounds as he was inserted back into the starting lineup.

David West (10 points) was the only other Pacer in double figures. Indiana couldn't get over 19 points in the first three quarters of action. Boston slogged through a slow start of its own (15 points in the 1st quarter) as they exploded for 32 in the second quarter thanks to some stingy defense and easy transition buckets.

The Celtics meet the Hawks (20-11, 2nd place in Southeast Division) tomorrow night (7 p.m., CSN) in Atlanta, their first of four matchups this season.

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The Question Of 2011-12: Will The Boston Celtics Ever Beat A Good Team?

I want to have hope for the Boston Celtics in 2011-12, I really do. However, when they've lost to every half-decent team (plus New Orleans) that they've played so far, I can't help but feel that they are front-running frauds.

Tonight, the Indiana Pacers came to TD Garden and they snapped Boston's (4-4) misleading (since it was against Detroit, Washington-twice-and New Jersey) four-game winning streak with an 87-74 beating that truthfully was never really in doubt.

For whatever reason, the Celts had no rhythm offensively other than Ray Allen, who had a game-high 23 points after missing Wednesday against New Jersey with the flu.

They tied a franchise low with 25 points in the first half. Somehow they were only down eight at that point but the Pacers (5-2) were efficient, younger and had more energy.

Paul Pierce had one of the worst shooting performances (3 of 17) in his career as he was held to 10 points. Kevin Garnett put up his now customary quiet 12 points and six rebounds while Rajon Rondo was held in check (11 points, 9 assists, 3 steals).

Four of the five Pacers that started scored in double-figures. Only David West (2 points, 10 rebounds), who spurned the Celtics' offer to come to Boston, had a bad game. Danny Granger led Indiana with a modest 15 points while Darren Collison (14 points), Paul George (12 points) and Roy Hibbert (11 points, 12 rebounds) all played well.

The two main reasons that the Pacers won were because they owned the glass (47-36 including 14-7 offensive rebounds) and their bench absolutely crushed Boston's (33-14).

George Hill (13 points) and Tyler Hansbrough (12 points) were both big sparks off the bench for Indiana that Boston had no answer for. The normally reliable Brandon Bass had his worst game in a Celtics uniform with five points (2 of 7 shooting) and four rebounds in 25 minutes.

I wouldn't normally say that four games is a reasonable sample size in an NBA season but since this particular one is only 66, I'd say the next nine days are vital for the C's. They have two more huge games at home: Wednesday vs. the defending champion Dallas Mavericks then Friday vs. Chicago. After that, they go to Indiana on Saturday and come home to face Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, January 16.

They need to beat either the Mavs or Bulls and then the Pacers the second time around to show that they are still elite in the Eastern Conference and by extension, the NBA. Otherwise, it's going to be a long and mediocre season.

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