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Rondo leads Celtics past Magic

Feb 7, 2011 - 7:12 AM Boston, MA (Sports Network) - Rajon Rondo finished with a season-high 26 points and dished out seven assists, as the Boston Celtics topped the Orlando Magic, 91-80, at TD Garden.

Paul Pierce added 18 points and five assists while Kevin Garnett posted 16 points and nine rebounds for the Celtics, who have won three of four. Kendrick Perkins grabbed a team-high 13 rebounds, and Glen Davis scored 11 in a reserve role for Boston.

Ray Allen, who entered the game five three-pointers shy of tying Reggie Miller's NBA record of 2,560 makes, went 2-for-4 from beyond the arc and finished with 11 points.

Dwight Howard scored a game-high 28 points with 13 rebounds, while Ryan Anderson netted 12 with seven boards for the Magic, who have lost three of four. Jason Richardson and Jameer Nelson both ended with 10 points in the loss.

Howard posted 12 points in the first quarter, after which the Magic held a 22-17 lead. He added 10 more in the second, but Orlando shot 30.4 percent from the field, allowing the Celtics to take a 46-43 lead into the break.

"It was tough tonight," said Celtics head coach Doc Rivers. "Dwight had it going early. But [we] stayed with it."

The second quarter was immensely physical, featuring 15 fouls and three technicals, but in the opening minutes of the frame, the game took a backseat to a scary situation involving Celtics swingman Marquis Daniels.

Daniels was driving into the lane when he collided with Orlando's Gilbert Arenas under the basket and fell to the floor, suffering what the team said was a bruised spinal cord.

After remaining on the court for several minutes, Daniels was placed on a stretcher and taken to the hospital in an ambulance. He was conscious during the process, giving a thumbs up to the home crowd, and the team said afterward that he was moving his arms and legs. He will miss at least a month.

"When you see a guy down like that you worry and pray," said Pierce.

Rondo added 11 of his points in the third quarter, when the Magic shot 7- of-25. Boston capitalized on the poor effort to expand its lead to 70-61 entering the final stanza.

The Celtics led by double digits for almost all of the fourth quarter.

Game Notes

Boston's Shaquille O'Neal missed his second straight game with a sore right leg...Howard recorded his 14th technical foul of the season with 8:42 remaining in the second, two shy of a league-mandated suspension...The Celtics shot 28-of-34 from the foul line, compared to 13-of-16 for the Magic...Both teams scored 38 points in the paint...Orlando scored 18 second-chance points.