By Brian Robb, for NBA.com
THE FACTS: Rajon Rondo had a historic triple-double as the Boston Celtics fought back from a late deficit in regulation to beat the New York Knicks 115-111 in an overtime thriller. Boston’s All-Star point guard had an incredible stat line of 18 points, a career-high 17 rebounds, and 20 assists, captaining the Celtics offense to a season-high point total.
It was only the third time in NBA history that a player has recorded at least 20 assists and 17 rebounds in a game. Magic Johnson did it in 1983, with 17 rebounds and 21 assists against the Hawks, and Wilt Chamberlain had 25 rebounds and 21 assists against Detroit in 1968.
Paul Pierce added a game-high 34 points during Boston’s fourth straight win, including a game tying three-pointer with just four seconds remaining in regulation. Carmelo Anthony had 25 points for the Knicks in setback, as the visitors could not overcome 22 turnovers to get the road win. With the setback, New York has now dropped 13 consecutive games at TD Garden, dating back to November 2006. Boston also extended their lead to one and a half games over their division rival for the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference.
QUOTABLE: “I’m just playing. The biggest thing is we got the win. Paul made that shot to send us into overtime and that was big for us. You know, if you get those type of numbers and you lose, it’s kind of irrelevant.”— Rondo on his triple-double. Click here to read the full NBA.com notebook. Photo: AP
