What did you do on your 23rd birthday?

If you're like me, your 23rd birthday wasn't too unique. From what I remember, I went out to a local chain restaurant with my parents and received a season of Rescue Me on DVD. Pretty thrilling.

If you're Rajon Rondo, your day was a little more special, as you scored a career-high 32 points (10 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals) in Boston's 128-108 win over Phoenix yesterday afternoon.

It was the Celtics' first game without KG since his latest injury (strained knee). The Suns (31-24) came in having won three straight games while setting an NBA record by scoring 140+ points in each of them. They were also missing a star as Amar'e Stoudemire is out for the rest of the regular season following retina surgery.

The C's (45-12) actually got off to a slow start, as the Suns led by eight early at home but after that Boston cruised. The Celts outscored Phoenix 38-33 in the first quarter and led 68-54 at the half.

It should come as no surprise that the Suns are still allergic to defense. They fired head coach Terry Porter and replaced him with Alvin Gentry, which means nothing except another eventual first round playoff exit (which would have happened regardless).

Rondo set his record early in the second half as the Suns tried to climb back (29-28). Even without KG and with their few big guys in foul trouble, the Celts closed with a 32-25 fourth quarter.

Ray Allen also had a great game, scoring 31 points while Paul Pierce added 26 points and six rebounds. Brian Scalabrine had one of his best games in a Celtics uniform (which is not saying much) as he dropped 14 points and Glen Davis notched 10 points.

Between court appearances and speeding tickets, Jason Richardson stopped by to score a meaningless 21 points. Steve Nash had 19 points and 11 assists while Shaquille O'Neal notched 17 points and six boards. Leandro Barbosa scored 18 points in the loss.

Boston takes on Denver in the Mile High City tonight. They'll be looking for revenge after the Nuggets knocked them off early in the season at the Garden. It will also be Chauncey Billups' first meeting against the C's as a member of the Nuggets.

Never Trust a Mormon

I'll give credit where credit's due: in front of a rabid crowd at EnergySolutions Arena, the Utah Jazz enjoy one of the biggest home court advantages in the NBA.

Using that, along with some terrible calls by the ghost of Dick Bavetta and a possibly huge injury, the Jazz beat the Celtics last night, 90-85 in a game that normally neutral C's announcer Mike Gorman quickly added at the completion, "the Celtics got hosed tonight."

Boston (44-12) lost the heart and soul of its team, Kevin Garnett, in the second quarter when he landed after an attempted alley-oop and starting hopping around, favoring his right leg. He went to the bench immediately and then hobbled to the locker room as Celtics fans around the country held their collective breaths.

The first word was that it's a right knee strain and he'll miss the next three games of the West Coast trip. I don't want to speculate about the severity of the injury but needless to say, if he is out for a significant period of time, it completely changes the complexion of the Eastern Conference and NBA as a whole. Yeah, he's that important.

The Jazz (32-23) got off to a very slow start, as they trailed 22-13 after the first quarter. They closed it to 39-38 C's at the break.

One of the easiest, most cliche, ignorant things to say about any sport is a critical comment of an official. They're human, they make mistakes, etc. However, last night was a complete joke.

With KG out, Boston still racked up 30 fouls to Utah's 18. The Jazz only took two more free throws (24-for-31) than the Celts (19-for-29) but the damage was clear as Boston defenders could never figure out what was a foul and what wasn't. I'm all for giving jobs to the elderly but I think it's time for Dick Bavetta to be put out to pasture. I mean really.

Boston valiantly played well without KG in the third (27-22) but predictably, it all came crashing down in the fourth (30-19) as the Jazz made all the big shots and their white bread crowd went about as crazy as a bunch of boring, white people can get.

This was all done without Carlos Boozer, so it was nonetheless an impressive win for Utah and perennially overlooked coach Jerry Sloan.

Mehmet Okur led the Jazz with 19 points and six rebounds. Deron Williams (18 points, 10 assists) made a clutch jumper to put the Jazz up four late. Ronnie Brewer added 16 points and four steals.

Everybody's favorite Russian baller Andrei Kirilenko had 13 points off the bench while Paul Millsap (or as I like to call him, Ryan Gomes on a good team) notched eight points and 10 boards.

Paul Pierce paced the C's with 20 points and nine rebounds but his shot wasn't falling like usual at the end. Rajon Rondo got in early foul trouble but still managed 15 points and seven assists. Kendrick Perkins had a nice game with 12 points, 11 boards and three blocks. Ray Allen added 12 points and Leon Powe was great off the bench (9 points, 9 rebounds).

With two days off between games, Boston has some time to refocus as they try to figure out how they'll do this without KG at least for the next week.

Not making a move at the trade deadline (other than dumping dead weight Patrick O'Bryant and Sam Cassell) is looking like a bad decision. The C's are running out of healthy bodies. Tony Allen might be out for the rest of the year after thumb surgery so rookies Bill Walker and J.R. Giddens will have to play some minutes.

They go to Phoenix on Sunday, which just found that Amare Stoudemire will be out for up to eight weeks after eye surgery.

The Boston Bruins and the Amazing Technicolor Power Play

After going winless in its last four games (0-2-2), the Boston Bruins flipped a switch last night and decided to be the dominant team they'd established themselves as in the season's first half.

Boston (40-10-8) rolled over host Carolina (28-25-5), 5-1, scoring three third period goals on Glen Wesley night (which may or may not still be going on).

Using a variety of goal-scorers and solid goaltending-the two keys to the unbelievable season-the B's showed why the last week has been a slight hiccup.

The Hurricanes actually scored first as Matt Cullen (15th) found the back of the net in the first period, from Ray Whitney and Dennis Seidenberg.

Rookie Blake Wheeler started a run of five straight goals for the visitors as he notched a power-play goal (his 17th) later in the first period, assisted by Milan Lucic and Andrew Ference.

Shane Hnidy gave his team the lead for good in the second period as he potted his third of the season from David Krejci.

Special team's play was the key of the night and the theme of the third period for the B's as Krejci (20th, from Patrice Bergeron) scored a short-handed goal with 3:48 left in the game.

Boston would score two more before it was over: Chuck Kobasew added another power-play goal (his 12th) from Zdeno Chara and P.J. Axelsson. Finally, Bergeron put home an empty-net goal (his 5th), short-handed from Stephane Yelle.

The two goals on the power play were a great sign for the B's since the man advantage has been terrible over the last few weeks.

Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas made 31 saves and his record moved up to 25-7-5.

After a flight to Florida last night, the Bruins get a day off in the Sunshine State today. The team is playing golf or going deep sea fishing in its free time. They'll play the red-hot Panthers on Saturday night.

You almost feel bad for the Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks are a reality TV show. You can't quite look away from whatever they're doing but you know that no matter what, they're frauds that won't ever amount to anything.

A little harsh? Yes but what else can you say after Dallas (31-21) built a 15-point lead last night against the Celtics (31-21) then predictably let it all slip away, 99-92.

It was the last game for both teams before the All-Star break, so what a way for the C's to go into it and conversely, the Mavs and their fans have to be cringing at what's looking like another first-round exit from the playoffs in the spring.

There is no disputing that Dirk Nowitzki is a great NBA player. What is debatable is if he can ever win a championship. For all of his crafty German offensive skills, he's a liability defensively and basically useless if his shot isn't falling.

Nowitzki had a game-high 37 points and eight rebounds but he couldn't do anything down the stretch as Paul Pierce and the Celts showed off their championship mettle.

Pierce scored 18 of his team-high 31 points in the fourth as he consistently isolated on Dallas defenders, who knew it was coming but still couldn't stop him.

Hurt thumb or not, Ray Allen added 20 points, Rajon Rondo posted a juicy triple-double (19 points, 15 rebounds, 14 assists) and Kevin Garnett dropped 16 points.

Boston head coach Doc Rivers received two technicals and got tossed from the game in the third quarter while Garnett also took a technical to fire his team up.

Without Jason Terry, the Mavs lack a consistent second scorer for Dirk. Josh Howard tossed in a quiet 17 points, Antoine Wright scored 10 and the ghost of Jason Kidd handed out 10 assists.

Dallas led 21-17 after one quarter and 51-40 at the half but who could be worried? The Mavs are about as opposite of clutch as you'll find for a team in the NBA.

Boston woke up with a 29-24 third and took it going away with a 30-17 dismantling in the fourth.

Mavs owner Mark Cuban sitting courtside could only weep in his limo on the way home as he wiped his ass with hundred dollar bills.

For the game, the C's shot 48.6% to the Mavs' 39.5%. Boston owned the glass (50-31) and had eight more assists (24-16) which made up for the ton of turnovers (19-8).

The big three will head to Phoenix for All-Star weekend while the rest of the team gets a few days off. With the win, Boston wrestled back the best record in the league. What more could you ask for at this point?

Celtics remember that games last four quarters (not three)

After shitting the bed in the last two fourth quarters against quality Western Conference opponents (the Lakers and Spurs, at the Garden no less), the Boston Celtics adjusted their internal clocks accordingly to 48 minutes, not 36 minutes.

As a result, they beat a good but beat up Hornets team, 89-77 in the Big Easy last night.

The win for the C's (43-11) was tempered with the loss of Ray Allen to a hyperextended thumb. Ray joins Tony Allen (thumb) and Brian Scalabrine (concussion) as Boston players who are out with injuries.

Apparently, Ray Allen is going to try to play tonight vs. Dallas, in the team's last game before the All-Star break, but honestly, what's the point? He's scheduled to play in the All-Star game too, which is another thing I will give him permission to skip.

The contest was actually tied at 64 heading into the fourth at the New Orleans arena. For non-math majors out there, that means Boston outscored New Orleans, 25-13 in final frame.

Paul Pierce had a game-high 30 points, Kevin Garnett notched a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds while Kendrick Perkins (9 points, 6 rebounds) and Rajon Rondo (6 points, 11 assists, 8 rebounds, 3 steals) also provided solid efforts.

Outside of Pierce's routine heroics, the most pleasant surprise was the play of Leon Powe (11 points, 6 rebounds) and Eddie House (12 points; how did he not make the 3-point shootout or game of H.O.R.S.E?).

Playing without Tyson Chandler and Mo Peterson (which I guess doesn't matter), the Hornets were led by David West's 15 points and eight rebounds. Hilton Armstrong added 14 points and eight boards. Boston was lucky to catch Chris Paul (13 points, 5 assists) at less than full speed as it was his first game back after missing four with a sprained foot.

It is ridiculous that the NBA All-Star game is situated so late in the regular season, the Celtics will have played 2/3 of its schedule when it breaks for the weekend.

Ah well, if the Celts can come away with a win in Dallas tonight (the Mavs are bi-polar but they're usually tough at home), they will have completed an excellent "first-half."

Revisiting one of the worst trades in sports history

With all the success the Boston Bruins have experienced this season, its easy to forget (especially for recent bandwagon jumpers) how much former GM Mike O'Connell screwed the B's on November 30, 2005.

The former No. 1 overall pick and face of the franchise, center Joe Thornton, was traded to the San Jose Sharks for essentially some sticks and a bag of pucks: Marco Sturm, Wayne Primeau and Brad Stuart.

Boston wasn't going anywhere with Thornton but that wasn't his fault since his supporting cast was usually terrible to mediocre at best. Since he's switched coasts, he's won an MVP trophy but still hasn't found much success in the playoffs.

With all these storylines floating around and hopefully O'Connell getting a break from flipping burgers last night to watch, the Sharks-the top team in the Western Conference-came to Boston last night to skate at the TD Banknorth Garden.

San Jose (37-7-7) scored four unanswered goals in the third to take a convincing 5-2 win over Boston (39-9-7).

A pass-first offensive player, Thornton scored a goal in the third period barrage. it wasn't exactly a thing of beauty as it deflected off his skate (but he didn't kick it) into the net.

Things looked good for the B's in the first when Milan Lucic potted a pair of goals (from Marc Savard and Dennis Wideman and Petteri Nokelainen respectively), sandwiched around a power-play goal from Sharks defenseman Rob Blake (Marc Edouard-Vlasic and Ryane Clowe assisted).

Neither team could find the net in the second period as each has top-notch goaltenders. San Jose goalie Evgeni Nabokov improved to 28-6-6 with 28 saves while Bruins goalie Tim Thomas (24-6-5) made 26 saves in the loss.

Patrick Marleau started the Sharks' run in the third, tying it at two with helpers from Christian Ehrhoff and Clowe.

Milan Michalek put San Jose up 3-2 from Dan Boyle and Clowe. Thornton's strike put it in the win column at 4-2 and finally, former BU star Mike Grier scored an empty-netter for the 5-2 final.

It was a disappointing result and to make matters worse, the walking wounded continue to pile up for the Bruins. Michael Ryder had surgery to fix his orbital bone and he's expected to miss 3-4 weeks. During last night's contest, Nokelainen was poke in the eye with an errant stick and was forced to leave the game while Chuck Kobasew wrenched his knee.

Boston will hit the road to face New Jersey on Friday night; many people would probably be surprised to know that the Devils are currently No. 2 in the Eastern Conference, one point ahead of the more hyped Capitals.

You've Done It Again Red Bomber

For the second straight home game, the Boston Celtics failed to execute at the end against one of the Western Conference's elite teams and as a result they lost.

Yesterday afternoon it was the San Antonio Spurs (still as boring as you remember them), who claimed a 105-99 victory at the TD Banknorth Garden.

It all went to hell when Boston was down two (95-93) and had an inbounds pass on the sideline.
Ray Allen (18 points) tried to get the ball to Paul Pierce (19 points, 8 rebounds) but he lost the handle and it was intercepted by Manu Ginobli (19 points). Pierce fouled him, of the clear path variety, and after making four free throws, the outcome was sealed.

Tim Duncan led the Spurs (34-15) with 23 points, 15 rebounds and five assists but teammate Matt Bonner, a native of Portsmouth, NH was the star of the show as far as New England was concerned (it has to always be about us, damn it!). Bonner finished with 23 points, eight boards and two steals. He is only the second Granite State native to play in the NBA.

Roger Mason (11 points) was the other unlikely leading man as he hit a dagger 3-pointer out of nowhere to put the San Antonio up two.

For the Celtics (42-11), Kevin Garnett had his best game in a long time, checking in with 26 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and two steals. Tony Allen scored 11 points off the bench, Kendrick Perkins added 10 points and seven boards while Rajon Rondo did his best Jason Kidd impression: six points, 16 assists, five rebounds.

An unsettling trend in recent weeks for the Celts has been their defense allowing 100+ points almost every time out. They'll need to tighten things up on the defensive end to knock off the top teams.

That was their last home game for over two weeks as they hit the road for an extended road trip (made longer by the All-Star break). The C's start in New Orleans on Wednesday night against the injury-depleted but talented Hornets.