Remember when the Bulls looked like an Eastern Conference power?

After the tough loss to the Pistons on Wednesday, some might worry the Celtics would go into a tailspin after not losing much so far this season. That shaky assumption was proven to be completely invalid as the Celts crushed the Bulls, 107-82 last night at the Garden.

Boston (21-3) used defense and balanced scoring-two hallmarks of this team-to put away the woeful Bulls (9-15). Six C's scored at least 11 points led by Paul Pierce (22 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists) and Ray Allen (18 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists) while Kevin Garnett (7 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals), Kendrick Perkins and Tony Allen (5 rebounds, 3 steals) had 12 points apiece.

James Posey scored all 11 of his points in the first half as the Celtics jumped out to a 56-41 halftime lead and coasted to the comfortable win, giving the big three plenty of rest in the second half.

What is up with Chicago? They have so much young talent (Luol Deng, Kurt Hinrich, Ben Gordon) and this year was supposed to be another step in becoming contenders but thus far they've been pathetic. Their biggest weakness is the lack of an inside scoring option. Ben Wallace and Joe Smith are hopeless and the fact that rookie center Aaron Gray (14 points, 6 rebounds) has been getting quality minutes lately and producing tells you all you need to know about the current Bulls.

Gordon had a team-high 19 points and Chris Duhon was the only other Bull in double figures with 10 points. Chicago shot a meager 35.5% from the floor, 4-11 for three-pointers and 15-26 from the line. Boston shot 44.3% from the field, made 12 of 26 threes and 33-42 from the line.

Besides getting to the line, another great trend for the Celtics is their infectious habit of sharing the ball. They recorded a whopping 25 assists on 31 baskets.

The Magic come to Boston tomorrow night in a rematch of the Celtic's first loss of the season. After starting the season on fire, Orlando has quickly come back to earth as they've been exposed for what they are: a team with one outstanding player (Dwight Howard) and a bunch of role players. The Magic don't have the type of depth to make noise in the playoffs. Giving all that money to Rashard Lewis was a joke and Jameer Nelson while a nice player will never be a star in the NBA.

Chauncey Ba-Ba-Ba-Billups

The Detroit Pistons have been to five straight Eastern Conference Finals. During that impressive run, they've taken home an NBA Championship and lost in another Final. With most of that same championship nucleus (Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince) back, the Pistons are still the team to beat in the East. The Celtics have gotten off to an amazing start (20-2) but as last night showed, they're not the Pistons. Not yet at least. Detroit won 87-85 at the Garden as Billups drained two free throws with 0.1 seconds left to ice it.

The loss snaps Boston's (20-3) nine game winning streak while also handing them their first defeat at home (12-1). It was a classic back and forth contest that resembled a playoff game even though it was mid-December. The Celtics jumped out to a 29-25 lead after one and a 52-45 advantage at the half. In the process, Celts second-year point guard Rajon Rondo played the half of his early NBA life. He had 14 points in the first half, including a sick ball-fake and hook shot around Rasheed Wallace and he also made an impossible off-balance layup while getting fouled. Predictably, he was completely shut down in the second half as he picked up five fouls and finished with 14 points, seven assists, three rebounds and three steals.

Boston's shots weren't falling in the third quarter (13 points) and some costly turnovers killed them in the final frame. Meanwhile, Billups (game-high 28 points, 8 assists) and Hamilton (21 points) were seemingly draining every shot. They couldn't miss. Antonio McDyess had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

On the other side, Kevin Garnett played one of his best games as a Celtic, submitting 26 points, 12 rebounds and 2 steals. He was consistently knocking down jumpers while teammate Ray Allen (fresh off sitting the last two games) had his most complete game of the year. Allen has made two game-winning shots but last night he was locked in as he had 24 points (on 9 of 13 shooting) and five boards.

The Celts found themselves down 78-71 after Pistons guard Lindsey Hunter made a three. Ray Allen had the highlight of the game as he drove to the hoop and threw down a reverse jam, something that nobody in the building expected (or would have believed). Soon after, Boston came back as Eddie House made a three to cut it to a three point deficit. After a Kendrick Perkins block, Allen calmly drained a three-pointer around two guys to tie it up. Billups had the ball stolen away by KG and it looked like Boston would have the last shot, the worst case scenario being that they miss and go to overtime.

The first mistake was that Paul Pierce got the last shot. Pierce struggled shooting all night (11 points on 5 of 16 shooting, 4 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals) and he bricked a medium range jumper. Even worse, Wallace controlled the rebound and Detroit had the ball with 1.7 seconds left after a timeout.

Everybody in the building (myself included) and watching on TV knew it was going to Billups and he didn't disappoint as he pump-faked Tony Allen and Allen couldn't help but crash into him. Chauncey is only a 90% career FT shooter so this one was over.

For the game, Boston shot an impressive 49.3% from the floor to the Pistons 40.3%. The C's couldn't buy threes though as they shot just 4 of 14 from beyond the arc. Detroit was 9 of 20 for three. The Pistons were 20-23 from the line while Boston struggled, shooting 13-21 as a team. Detroit's bench outscored Boston 14-5. Celtics super subs Eddie House (5 points) and James Posey (0 points) each had their worst games in recent memory.

All in all it was a real exciting game that was hopefully a precursor of things to come in May (albeit with a different ending). The Pistons are still ridiculously efficient and calm under pressure. As proof of that, their head coach is bozo Flip Saunders. Even he couldn't mess this team up. The Celtics can only gain from a big game like this. Too many times already this season, they've simply overmatched scrub Eastern Conference and a few terrible Western Conference teams. You can only get better after facing a team like Detroit.

The Bulls come to Boston tomorrow night and who knows what to expect from them. Chicago is a talented team but they rarely have seemed to show up this year. The C's beat them a few weeks back in Chi-town.

Winter Weather in New England, the Great Equalizer

After a substantial snow storm on Thursday, New England was hit hard yesterday with a wintry mix of snow, rain and extreme wind. Of course, it all happened during the Patriots-Jets game at Gillette as the storm system seemed to center around the stadium. Pregame talk of how much the Pats were going to beat the Jets by looked silly as the terrible conditions rendered this a survival game. The Pats (14-0) did enough to win, 20-10, and are now just the second team in NFL history (you know the other) to start 14-0.

New England punted on its first possession but backed the Jets up against their goal-line as special-teamers Kelley Washington and Willie Andrews downed the ball at the 3-yard line. Two plays into the drive, Patriots defensive lineman Richard Seymour broke free and planted Jets QB Kellen Clemens just when he let go of the ball. The pass was a duck and Pats safety Eugene Wilson came off local milk cartons and made the easiest 5-yard interception return for a touchdown that you'll ever see. Wilson became the 21st different Patriot to score a TD this year, tying the '87 Rams and '00 Broncos for the record.

With the intense wind and slippery conditions, it was clear from the start that the Pats vaunted passing attack would be subdued. A good result of this was that the running game was finally a factor. Running back Laurence Maroney had a career-high 26 carries for 104 yards and a touchdown. It was enough to offset Tom Brady's (14 of 27, 140 yards, 1 INT) worst game of the year.

It will sound arrogant (which it probably is) but you just had the feeling, even when the Jets were down by a single score in the fourth quarter that they just had no chance to win. The elements helped them hang around but ultimately, they have way too many bums to take out the Patriots this season. Whipping boy Chad Pennington played most of the game for the Jets and actually was pretty decent (25 of 38, 186 yards). If you thought he had a rag arm before, you should have seen him dink and dunk yesterday. It was amazing the ball even made it the requisite five yards on his normal patterns. The guy is a joke. Even more hilarious, the Jets used Brad Smith (an option QB at Missouri) at quarterback to give the Patriots a different look. It worked the first time as Jets running back Leon Washington took an option pitch 49-yards but after that it was a lame gimmick used by a desperate coach.

After a Stephen Gostowski 26-yard field goal put the Patriots up 10-0 early in the second, two bizarre plays happened less than seven minutes apart that you'll probably never see back-to-back again in an NFL game. First the Jets blocked a Chris Hanson punt and David Bowens returned it 26-yards for a score. On the ensuing Jets drive, after stalling near their end zone, Washington came around the corner and blocked the Jets punt, giving the Pats the ball at the Jets 3. Maroney slammed it in from a yard out to give the Patriots a 17-7 lead at the half.

Other than the running game, the other biggest positive for New England to take from this game was that their red zone defense was spectacular. The Jets had four trips inside the Pats 20 and came away with three total points. A missed field goal, turnover on downs and forced fumble were the costly mistakes.

Linebacker Adalius Thomas has been justifiably criticized much of this season since he's disappeared in most games. Yesterday, however was his best game of the year by far. He had nine tackles, 1.5 sacks and he forced the fumble (which was recovered by Wilson). Fellow linebacker Junior Seau was also great with nine tackles and two sacks. Does any defensive player in the league celebrate more than him?

The scoring in the second half was limited to a field goal for each team in the fourth quarter. The Jets appeared to have a touchdown with 2:30 left in the fourth but Justin McCareins was ruled to be juggling the ball when he caught it in the back of the end zone. True to form of a bad team, the Jets missed the field goal try after that and the game was effectively over.

Moss had five catches for 79 yards while Wes Welker was held in check with three catches for 30 yards. Welker did go over 1000 yards for the season though as he and Moss are the first Patriots duo since Stanley Morgan and Harold Jackson (in 1979) and only the second in history to accomplish that feat. Brady also surpassed his career-high for passing yards as he now has 4235. His previous best was 4110 in 2005.

Miami finally got a win yesterday, 22-16 in overtime so they won't come to Gillette next Sunday winless. The Pats should have no problems with the hapless Dolphins but as yesterday proved, the winter weather can bring the Pats down a few notches. We'll have to see what Mother Nature has in store for Sunday.

North of the Border, the Celts home home with another win

Playing without Ray Allen for the second game in a row, the Celtics had no problem with the Toronto Raptors, winning 90-77 in a Sunday afternoon game in Toronto. With the win, Boston (20-2) has won nine in a row (its longest win streak in 14 years) and now can focus on a huge Eastern Conference showdown Wednesday as the Pistons come to the Garden. The last time the Celts started 20-2 was in the '63-'64 season and they went on to win the NBA championship that year.

The Celts used some lockdown defense to hold the Raptors (14-11) to their lowest point total of the season. In the process, the Celts also took a commanding 3-0 series lead over Toronto this season with one game remaining.

Six Celtics scored in double figures, led by Paul Pierce (18 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists), Kevin Garnett (16 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists) and Rajon Rondo (14 points, 4 assists).

Toronto was playing without star guard T.J. Ford, who had burned the Celtics in the earlier meetings. Chris Bosh had a double-double (17 points, 13 rebounds) but he shot only 4 of 12 from the floor. Jamario Moon (13 points) and Kris Humphries (12 points) were the other standouts for Toronto.

Boston played great in the first half, comfortably leading 50-36 at the break. Tony Allen (10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) played well in his second straight start. James Posey (10 points, 7 boards) and Eddie House (11 points) brought their usual energy off the bench.

For the game, Boston shot 49.3% to Toronto's 38.9%. The other final number that jumped out is that the C's only committed nine turnovers while Toronto had 17.

The beat goes on for the Celtics. I'm psyched to be going to the game on Wednesday against the Pistons. It's on ESPN and Detroit (17-7) has quickly pushed itself to the top of the Eastern Conference, presumably posing the biggest threat to the C's while the Magic have faded (5-5 in their last 10 games). Boston and Detroit each have the next two days off (other than practice) and Ray Allen should be back for the game so everything is lining up for a classic.

No surprise, Ray Allen proves to be the most expendable of the big three

With Ray Allen out (to rest his ankle), the Celts still rolled over the Bucks last night at the Garden, 104-82. With the win, Boston ties the franchise best start of 12-0 at home (duplicated by the '84-'85 squad) and now has a chance to set the mark on Wednesday when they take on the Pistons (finally another good team!).

This game followed the Celtics (19-2) recent pattern of letting an inferior opponent hang around in the first half before stepping on their throat's in the third quarter and burying them by the fourth quarter.

The C's led 46-44 at the half. In Ray Allen's place, Tony Allen (no relation) started and played his best game of the young season. Tony had 11 points, four steals, three rebounds and two assists. His crowning achievement of the night was holding Bucks star Michael Redd to just seven points. At the end of the half, the play of the game was provided by Allen, Rajon Rondo and Kevin Garnett. Allen stole the ball from Mo Williams and then raced up court in a three-on-one with Rondo on one side and KG trailing. Allen passed to Rondo, who passed it back to him before leaving it for KG, who slammed it home with authority.

In the third quarter, Boston outscored the Bucks (9-13) 32-15. With Redd totally neutralized, nobody else on Milwaukee stepped up on the offensive end. Williams led the team with 14 points.

For the Celts, Paul Pierce played great (32 points) and Rondo (17 points, 8 assists) was excellent after going scoreless against the Kings. Garnett had an efficient 15 points, seven boards, four assists and two steals. Kendrick Perkins was back but pretty invisible (4 points, 5 boards). Eddie House notched nine points and Leon Powe and Gabe Pruitt both had seven in very limited minutes.

Once again, Boston dominated at the free-throw line, shooting 26 of 30 while the Bucks were 10 of 13. The Celtics had 13 turnovers and the Bucks had 20.

Boston travels to Toronto for a matinee against the Raptors (the third time already the teams have met) tomorrow. Ray Allen is expected back but there's no rush as Boston proved they can certainly win without him. Ray has been a good addition chemistry-wise but so far his game has been a little suspect. He's a great shooter but we haven't seen that side of him yet. Still, there's plenty of time left for him to find his game and get back to full health.

Big Baby eats two Kings and helps Celts stay unbeaten at home

A sign that this Celtics team is good: you already expect wins most nights they play. Boston improved to 18-2 (best record in the NBA) last night with a 90-78 win over the Sacramento Kings at the Garden. The Celts also saw their home record go to 11-0.

Paul Pierce led the way with a game-high 26 points, six boards, four assists and two steals. Kendrick Perkins was out because he dropped his bed on his toe the other day. Uh OK. Anyways, in his place rookie Glen Davis got his first NBA start and didn't disappoint as he notched 16 points (including 10 of 10 from the free throw line) and nine rebounds. Ray Allen is still struggling to find his shot but he added 15 points, including two key back-to-back threes in the third when the Celts started to put the Kings away. Kevin Garnett had a very quiet night with 11 points and six rebounds while James Posey and Eddie House both scored eight.

The Kings are nowhere near the halcyon days of C-Webb, Bibby, Christie and Vlade. Their top scorer is Kevin Martin but he's currently out with a groin problem. Bibby is also out with an ankle injury. In their place, Ron Artest is the leader which quite obviously is never a winning formula (in either basketball or the music industry).

Ron Ron and point guard Beno Udrih led the Kings with 16 points each. Brad Miller added 14 points and seven boards.

The Celts jumped out a 25-17 lead after the first quarter and all things pointed to a blowout. The Kings though played well in the second quarter and actually led the C's by one (45-44) going into the half.

The teams reverted back to form in the second half as the assorted bums on the Kings (Mikki Moore, Francisco Garcia, John Salmons) started to brick shots while the Celts played good defense and made their shots.

The story of the game was the free throw line. The C's made a ridiculous 30-32 at the line to the Kings meager 11-12 total. Sacramento was content to take jumpers and the Celtics kept driving to the hole. It wasn't a classic game by any means but Boston did enough to overcome a sluggish start and a bad overall shooting night (39.1% as a team).

Boston looks to stay hot as they host the Bucks tomorrow night. Outside of Michael Redd there is nobody on the Bucks that scares you in the least bit.

This can't be right, can it?

Lost amidst all the year-round Red Sox hysteria, breathless Patriots coverage (as ESPN's bottom line has dubbed it, Pursuit of Perfection) and the Celtics amazing start, the Boston Bruins are currently the No. 2 team in the Eastern Conference and they have the third best record in the entire league. Saying they are under the radar is a severe understatement. I love hockey but the NHL is just barely above WNBA and MLS in terms of excitement (other than the NHL playoffs which are great).

I won't lie and say I've watched every Bruins game or been to a bunch of games at the Garden. Rather, what I've seen of the Bruins has happened while other more important contests/shows are on commercial breaks. Boston is 17-10-3 (overtime losses) after last night's 5-3 win at Atlanta. What makes this season so surprising so far for the B's is that the free agent goalie they brought in (Manny Fernandez) has predictably been a flop and is now out for the rest of the season with a knee injury. Backup goalies Tim Thomas and most recently Alex Auld (acquired from Pheonix) have played very well for the most part. Monster defenseman Zdeno Chara, who had a disappointing first season in the Hub has played well this year, notching four goals and 14 assists while sporting a plus-minus of nine.

The Bruins franchise player is 22-year-old center Patrice Bergeron, who has been out since mid-October with a nasty concussion. His status is really up in the air, the Bruins understandably are cautious with their offensive star and therefore he might not even see the ice again in a game this season. In his absence, center Marc Savard has been superb. Savard has 36 points and his 29 assists lead the NHL. Winger Chuck Kobesaw (a former BC standout) leads the team with 12 goals while center P.J. Axelsson leads Boston with plus-minus of 11.

So what does this all mean? Nothing really at the moment. The NHL is dangerously close to doing something drastic (moving all the teams to Canada or folding) since it's not even considered the fourth most popular sports in the States anymore. The Bruins have been awful the last two years and in their last two trips into the playoffs, they've choked in the first round. Their best hope is that once the Pats season is over and before the Sox have started the regular season, they can steal a little of the spotlight. The Celtics are definitely going into the playoffs so the Bruins need to follow suit or else this great start will mean nothing as the NHL quickly fades from the local sports scene.