Celtics 94, Wizards 86
Rajon Rondo had a triple-double with 18 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds, and Kevin Garnett had 24 points and nine rebounds as the Boston Celtics notched a 94-86 victory over the host Washington Wizards on Sunday.
Ray Allen added 13 points as Boston won for the first time in four road contests.
John Wall had 19 points and eight assists, Nick Young scored 18 and JaVale McGee added 16 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots for Washington during the first of a home-and-home between the teams.
The Celtics led by 17 points at halftime but the Wizards made runs that narrowed the Boston lead to seven points in both the third and fourth quarters.
Washington pulled within 80-73 on Trevor Booker’s fastbreak dunk with 7:48 left in the game but Garnett scored 10 points during an 14-6 spurt that saw the Celtics take a 15-point lead with 2:36 remaining.
The Wizards missed their first 10 3-pointers until Jordan Crawford connected on a 3 to pull Washington within 65-58 with 2:31 left in the third quarter. Boston responded by outscoring Washington 8-2 to close the third quarter for a 73-60 advantage.
Garnett had 12 first-half points as Boston led by as many as 19 en route to a 51-34 halftime lead.
Washington finished 2-of-16 from 3-point range.