Celtics Notch Ninth Straight Win With 104-102 Victory Over Wizards

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Ray Allen scored 18 points to surpass 20,000 points for his career. Paul Pierce eclipsed 19,000 career points with a 12-point performance. Kevin Garnett added 17 points while Kendrick Perkins ended with 16 points and 11 rebounds for Boston, which hasn’t lost since November 20 against Orlando.

Gilbert Arenas finished with 25 points and eight assists for the Wizards, who have lost three in a row. Brendan Haywood chipped in 17 points and eight rebounds. Andray Blatche had 17 points and a career-high three steals. Antawn Jamison finished with 16 points and eight boards in defeat.

The Wizards opened the fourth on a 12-5 run to close their deficit to two. Blatche capped the flurry with a jumper and a trey to make it an 88-86 game with less than eight minutes to play.

Jamison’s deuce tied the tilt at 98 with 1:20 left. Rondo’s slam at the other end gave Boston a two-point lead with 1:08 to go.

Arenas had a chance to tie the contest with 26.7 seconds left on the clock, but he missed a pair of free throws. Pierce made 1-of-2 from the foul line at the other end to give Boston a 101-98 margin with 22.4 ticks to play.

Just 14.6 seconds remained on the clock after an Arenas jumper and pair of Allen foul shots. The Wizards missed a pair of three-pointers before Perkins pulled down a key defensive rebound. Perkins then made 1-of-2 from the charity stripe to essentially seal the victory.

The Celtics ripped off six consecutive points late in the first quarter to get within one, 26-25. The Wizards held a 28-27 edge after 12 minutes of play.

Boston went on a 13-4 spurt to begin the second. Allen’s deuce had the Celtics ahead 40-32 with 8:17 left. Boston built a 64-50 lead at the break.

Washington scored the first six points of the third to cut the deficit to 64-56 less than two minutes in. Moments later, the Wizards scored 11 straight points to take the lead. Jamison’s layup capped the run, giving Washington a 72-70 edge with about five minutes to go.

The Celtics fought back with 11 unanswered points of their own to go back in front. Rondo’s 20-foot jumper gave Boston a 81-72, and they led 83-74 heading to the fourth.

The Celtics improved to 10-1 on the road this season...The Wizards will wear a patch on their jerseys for the rest of the season to honor late owner Abe Pollin, who died on November 24 at the age of 85. Thursday night was the first night that Washington wore the patches.