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Celtics throttle Bobcats 92-59
AP Photo
Rajon Rondo (9) gets tangled up with Gerald Wallace.
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Published: October 29, 2009
BOSTON - Kevin Garnett scored 10 points with seven rebounds over 26 easy minutes last night and the Boston Celtics held Charlotte to a franchise-low in scoring and coasted to a 92-59 victory in their home opener.
Ray Allen had 18 points and was the only Boston starter to play in the fourth quarter. Paul Pierce scored 15, Rajon Rondo scored 10 with 11 assists and Rasheed Wallace came off the bench with three 3-pointers.
Shelden Williams had 12 points and nine rebounds as a reserve.
Gerald Wallace had 10 points and 12 rebounds -- the only Bobcat to reach double digits in scoring.
Garnett, who missed 25 regular-season games and the playoffs last year because of strained ligaments in his right knee, went through his usual pregame routine, pumping his arms and banging his head against the basket support. He hopped around the court, pointing at the crowd, drawing cheers from the fans who have said that his injury was the only thing that kept Boston from winning back-to-back NBA championships.
Pierce took the microphone before the opening tip, alluding to last season's disappointment and promising something better in 2009-10.
"We expect great things. You see up there, there's only 17 of them," he said, pointing to the championship banners than hang from the Boston Garden rafters. "I think we need another one."
Boston scored the first eight points of the game, then piled it on with six 3-pointers in the second quarter to take an 11-point halftime lead. The Celtics scored the first 15 points of the second half and led by as many as 30 in the third quarter.
Only Raymond Felton's buzzer-beater kept the Bobcats from equaling a franchise-low eight points in the third quarter.
Notes: Charlotte's Gerald Henderson Jr. started his NBA career in the same place his father, Gerald Sr., started his. The elder Henderson, who spent the first five years of his 13-year career in Boston, was in the stands.... Felton got hit in the mouth in the second quarter and needed 15 stitches, but he returned in the second half.
CHARLOTTE -- G.Wallace 3-9 4-8 10, Diaw 3-7 0-0 6, Chandler 0-5 0-0 0, Felton 3-11 3-5 9, Graham 2-11 1-3 5, Mohammed 2-4 1-3 5, Augustin 0-5 1-2 1, Henderson 3-7 2-2 8, Radmanovic 1-3 0-0 2, Brown 4-9 1-2 9, Ajinca 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 23-74 13-25 59.
BOSTON -- Pierce 4-9 4-4 15, Garnett 5-9 0-0 10, Perkins 4-10 1-1 9, Rondo 5-6 0-0 10, R.Allen 6-17 2-3 18, Daniels 1-5 0-0 2, R.Wallace 3-8 0-0 9, Williams 2-3 8-11 12, House 3-7 0-0 7, Giddens 0-1 0-0 0, Hudson 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 33-76 15-19 92.
Charlotte 13 18 10 18 -- 59
Boston 22 20 25 25 -- 92
3-Point Goals--Charlotte 0-10 (Felton 0-1, Brown 0-1, G.Wallace 0-1, Graham 0-1, Henderson 0-1, Diaw 0-1, Augustin 0-2, Radmanovic 0-2), Boston 11-29 (R.Allen 4-10, Pierce 3-5, R.Wallace 3-8, House 1-4, Giddens 0-1, Daniels 0-1). Fouled Out--None. Rebounds--Charlotte 60 (G.Wallace 12), Boston 50 (Williams 9). Assists--Charlotte 10 (Augustin 4), Boston 28 (Rondo 11). Total Fouls--Charlotte 23, Boston 22. Technicals--Chandler, G.Wallace, Charlotte defensive three second, Perkins, Pierce, Boston defensive three second. A--18,624 (18,624).
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