Extinction Level Event: C's losing streak is history

By Brian Robb, for NBA.com
Posted Thursday January 19, 2012 12:45AM

THE FACTS: Rajon Rondo carried the Boston Celtics with 21 points before leaving with a sore right wrist, helping the C's snap a five-game losing streak with a 96-73 win over the Toronto Raptors. The All-Star point guard's aggressive offense enabled Boston to build a 20-point lead over the first three frames, before he was fouled hard on a drive with 2:12 remaining in the third quarter. Linas Kleiza was assessed a Flagrant-one foul on the play, while Rondo left the game after shooting his two free throws. He did not return. Kevin Garnett chipped in with 15 points for the hosts, as the Celtics ended the team's longest losing streak since 2007. The shorthanded Raptors scored a season-low 73 points in the setback, and they have now lost six straight games. Gary Forbes had a team-high 18 points for Toronto off the bench.

QUOTABLE: "It's day to day, we'll see how I feel tomorrow. I took a couple Advil and I'm sure I'll be OK."
-- Rondo on his sore right wrist

THE STAT: The Celtics scored a season-high 29 points over the opening 12 minutes on 60 percent shooting. That total was a gigantic jump from their first quarter average of 16.6 points during the team's recent five-game slide.

TURNING POINT: Boston held the Raptors scoreless over a six-minute stretch in the first quarter, as they broke open a tight 9-8 game with a 13-0 run to push its lead to double-digits. The Raptors were unable to recover from the early deficit, as they never got closer than six points over the remainder of the contest.

QUOTABLE II: "Pietrus has already done far more than I thought he would do this quickly, and his energy is just infectious, and defensively he's unbelievable. You know, I remember not liking him when he was with the Magic when he came on the floor, because of his defensive toughness. And you've kind of forgotten about it. And he's reminding you why you didn't like him."
-- Celtics coach Doc Rivers

HOT: Rondo -- The point guard switched out his usual role of facilitator against Toronto and became the team's go-to scorer, especially early on in the contest. Rondo hit all five shots he attempted during the opening frame, and added three free throws as well, to finish with 13 points in the period, one short of Toronto's total.

NOT: DeMar DeRozan -- The athletic swingman tried to take on an increased scoring load with lead scorerAndrea Bargnani sidelined, but struggled against Boston's pesky defense. DeRozan mustered just 11 points on 25 percent shooting (4-for-16) and coughed up five turnovers as well for the struggling Raptors.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Mickael Pietrus -- The late addition to the C's roster should be attractive to those needing a three-point scoring boost to their roster. The energetic small forward was 4-for-7 on 3s to finish with 12 points. Pietrus is now shooting 40.7 percent from beyond the arc on the season.

QUOTABLE III: "I thought we competed for a while and then we gave in. I thought the Celtics came out the more desperate team. We both were desperate, but they came out the more desperate than we did."
-- Toronto coach Dwayne Casey

ROOKIE WATCH: Boston led comfortably for the majority of the second half, giving Rivers an opportunity to give his trio of rookies an extended look. Greg Stiemsma, E'Twaun Moore, and JaJuan Johnson all saw action for Boston. Johnson led the group with three points.

NOTABLE: Bargnani (calf) and Jerryd Bayless (ankle) did not suit up for the Raptors. Both remain day-to-day. Aaron Gray made his season debut for Toronto after missing the past four weeks with a heart ailment. The center grabbed four rebounds over 19 minutes. Keyon Dooling (knee) and Chris Wilcox (calf) both missed their third straight game for Boston. Dooling is hoping he can play Friday vs. Phoenix, while Wilcox is targeting a return next week, according to Rivers. ... Boston led by as many as 27 points in the fourth quarter. ... Paul Pierce had a season-high seven assists. ... Boston had 15 fast-break points, improving on an area of emphasis Rivers had keyed upon before the game. ... James Johnson earned his first start of the season in place of Rasual Butler. The third-year forward finished with just four points on one-of-seven shooting from the field.