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Allen paces Celtics over Heat

Nov 12, 2010 - 6:06 AM Miami, FL (Sports Network) - Ray Allen connected on 7-of-9 three-pointers and finished with a season-high 35 points, as the Boston Celtics again got the better of the Miami Heat, 112-107, at American Airlines Arena.

Paul Pierce added 25 points for the Celtics, who also beat the new-look Heat in their season-opener back on October 26. They won that game by an 88-80 score in Boston.

Kevin Garnett had 16 points and 13 boards in the victory, Boston's sixth in its last seven games. Rajon Rondo had 16 assists to go with eight points.

LeBron James paced Miami with 35 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, but the Heat dropped their second consecutive game. They were coming off Tuesday's 116-114 overtime loss against Utah, in which James recorded a triple-double.

Dwyane Wade shot just 2-for-12 and finished with eight points, while Chris Bosh added 15 points for the Heat, who allowed 100 points for just the second time this season.

"He did a great job on Wade defensively," Rondo said of Allen. "It is not easy. Any guy in this league can tell you that. Offensively, tonight was just one of those nights where you get out of his way and keep calling his plays."

The Heat trailed by as many as 20 and were still behind by double-digits with under three minutes to play, but nearly came back.

Udonis Haslem, who ended with 21 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, sank a jumper to kick off an eight-point run. His two free throws with 13.3 seconds left ended the rally to bring Miami within 110-107, but Allen made his two foul shots after being sent to the line with seven seconds to play, and the Celtics held on.

"Tonight they simply out-executed us, carved us up and exploited us," Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said. "It paralyzed us. The thing that we had been doing well, we were kind of caught watching. We're better than this."

Despite its late-game shooting problems, Boston shot 54.4 percent for the game and took control early. Already ahead by one, the Celtics got a three-point play from Shaquille O'Neal to key a 9-1 burst. Allen ended it with a pair of jumpers for a 14-5 advantage.

The Celtics continued to play in front, and with about four minutes left in the quarter Allen made another shot. Boston got the ball back following a Wade turnover, and Rondo took advantage of a half-court standstill to drive for a dunk over Bosh, who did not contest the basket.

That made it a 22-10 game, though former Celtic Eddie House ended the quarter with a three to get Miami within 27-20.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas began the second quarter with a layup, and the Heat stayed within a few possessions for the next few minutes. However, with under eight minutes to go, Pierce drilled a three before a Glen Davis layup gave Boston a 39-29 advantage.

The Celtics got their lead as high as 17 and took a 61-46 advantage into halftime. Boston shot 60 percent and tallied 13 second-chance points over the first two quarters.

Boston grabbed a 72-52 lead on an Allen fadeaway several minutes into the third, but the Heat started to trim their deficit by scoring the next six. Miami used another six-point run in the final minutes to get within 88-78 moving to the fourth.

The Celtics continued to play in front, though, and took a 110-99 advantage on Allen's layup with 2:51 on the clock.

Game Notes

Rondo has recorded at least 15 assists in six games this season. He is just two shy of matching his own club single-season record, set last year...Wade did not score in double-figures for the first time in 30 games...Miami made half its shots (36-of-72), but only 3-of-16 from beyond the arc...Boston made just 17-of-25 free throws, while the Heat sank 32- of-41...House provided 13 points off the bench for Miami...Boston has won seven in a row and 13 of 14 against the Heat.