Rondo had his second straight triple-double to avoid Linsanity in his return to Boston. Rondo came up big in OT to get Boston the win, scoring five points, five rebounds, and two assists in there.
"I know we're all in this together, but it's great when he takes over like that," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "He's the smartest point guard I've ever been around. He's a brilliant player like that."
The Big Three played solid as well. Paul Pierce had 34 points, including a big three at the end of the fourth. Kevin Garnett had 18 points and ten boards while Ray Allen had had a big three in overtime to basically end the game.
What Rondo did was truly magical. He joins Magic Johnson and Wilt Chamberlain as one of the only players to score a triple-double with 17 points or more in each category. Magic had 24 points, 17 assists, and 17 rebounds in his game back in 1989. Wilt had more than Rondo, with 22 points, 25 rebounds, and 21 assists back in 1968.
"That's the Rondo we like to see, playing with all that energy," Pierce said. "He got the guys the ball in open spots; he did everything for us tonight. He rebounded, he passed, he got the clutch rebound there in overtime and got the layup. That's the Rondo I like to see."
And just to think earlier this week that the Celtics were considering trading him to the Los Angeles Lakers.
As for Jeremy Lin, he struggled. He had 14 points, six assists, and five rebounds, but had two fouls in the first three minutes of the game, along with six turnovers. The Knicks fall to 18-19, but they are still in playoff contention. And things are starting to click more, as Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire played solid. Melo had 25 points while Stoudemire had 16 along with 13 rebounds. Tyson Chandler added with 14 boards.
Boston improves to 19-17.
"It was a big win for us," Rondo said. "We're trying to get a little separation."
However, Linsanity almost struck again. With the Knicks down 94-89 with 3:55 remaining, Lin took off. He made two free throws, then stole the ball and scored off a layup, and then followed that up with a three-pointer. At the end, Carmelo would miss at the buzzer, which sent the game into OT.
From there, it was all Celtics. Allen put the icing on the cake after his three put Boston up, 108-105. After that, it was game over.
A solid win for the Celtics. They take on Houston next on Tuesday.
And Boston, keep Rondo.
Josh has been writing since January 2009 and has founded the websites FootBasket, Hardcourt Mayhem, Gridiron Mayhem, and Staring Down Spike. For a full bio, check out JoshDhani.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshDhani
