• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Harangody helps Boston clobber Toronto

Jan 8, 2011 - 5:01 AM Boston, MA (Sports Network) - Luke Harangody poured in 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in a reserve role, as the Boston Celtics dominated the Toronto Raptors, 122-102, at TD Garden.

Paul Pierce added 20 points and five boards for the Celtics, who have won four in a row. Ray Allen tallied 17 points and six rebounds and Nate Robinson donated 17 points for Boston, which had six players in double figures.

Rajon Rondo, coming off his triple-double performance on Wednesday, chipped in with nine points and seven assists.

"Yeah, he was great. It was phenomenal," Celtics head coach Doc Rivers said of Harangody. "It's funny, our whole coaching debate all date was, you know, when you took Baby (Glen Davis) off the floor, (Andrea) Bargnani was going to still be on the floor, who do we put in? And we went with Luke. And I just thought his energy, number one, was fantastic. And he made shots."

DeMar DeRozan finished with 20 points for the Raptors, who went 1-2 on their road trip. Andrea Bargnani and Linas Kleiza each tallied 17 points for Toronto, which got 15 points and seven assists from Leandro Barbosa.

The Celtics came out of the gates on fire, shooting 63.6 percent from the field in the first quarter.

Holding an 18-17 lead, Boston ripped off eight straight points. Allen's layup capped the surge and gave the home team a 26-17 lead with 3:06 left.

The Celtics scored the final six points of the period to take a 34-22 margin.

Ahead by 11, 37-26, early in the second quarter, Boston pulled away with a 6-0 flurry. Jermaine O'Neal's slam made it a 43-26 game. Shaquille O'Neal's layup with 3:16 remaining extended the margin to 57-36.

The Celtics made 68.4 percent of their shots in the second period, and took a 67-45 advantage into the locker room.

The Raptors outscored Boston, 32-27, in the third, but still trailed by a 94-77 margin.

Bargnani's slam with over 9 1/2 minutes to play in the game got Toronto within 12, 98-86. The Celtics, though, put the game away with an ensuing 15-1 run.

"You know, it's tough because veterans like that have been through every type of basketball game since they've been in the league," DeRozan said. "They know how to get through adversity and we've just got to keep battling with them...but a team like that is definitely tough."

Game Notes

The Celtics win the season series with the Raptors, 3-1. Boston has won 11 of 12 and 15 of the past 17 matchups with Toronto, which has dropped six in a row in Beantown...The Celtics, who shot 57.5 percent from the field, improved to 16-2 at home this season...Raptors guard Jerryd Bayless (ankle) missed the game...Shaquille O'Neal ended with 12 points and six rebounds.