Celtics outrun Kings

Rajon Rondo (19 points) and Paul Pierce (24 points) ran laps around the Kings, scoring the majority of their total scores in the 1st half. The Kings lived and died by the 3 ball tonight, and that's not to say that several of them did not splash in; they did, just not enough to come back and win.

Kevin Martin lit up the scoreboard as well against his former-former team, nailing shots from the far end for a total of 19 points, including a fade-away, step-back 3 pointer to end the 3rd quarter. After the first half, the Celtics relied on their reserves, wishing to rest their stars for the anticipated rematch against the Lakers tomorrow night in Hollywood.

With Coach Doc Rivers' confidence, the bench got the job done. Charlie Villanueva scored 10 points and grabbed 8 rebounds at PF, Josh Howard did his part with 7 points and Roy Hibbert turned in 4 points with 5 rebounds. The deciding factor of this game was Boston's energetic commitment to Sacremento's high tempo playing style, and how they excelled at it, with Paul Pierce crashing in long ball after long ball and Rajon Rondo spinning, twisting and clawing his way into the paint.

In the loss for the Kings, Marcus Thornton rained down 26 points, Jason Thompson gave 16 with 14 rebounds, Aaron Brooks dipped in 18 points and Tyreke Evans rolled in 16 also with 14 assists. If only their defense wasn't as loose as their free-flowing, run-and-gun style. Sadly, shots in the second half quit falling for them

Hopefully, these "new legs" from Boston will stick around, at least until they're through in Los Angeles.