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Celtics go for fifth straight win

Mar 22, 2008 - 2:00 PM Boston (55-13) at New Orleans (46-21) 8:00 pm EDT

NEW ORLEANS (Ticker) - The Boston Celtics look to run their win streak to five games Saturday when they visit the New Orleans Hornets.

The Celtics (55-13) are six games in front of the Detroit Pistons (49-19) in the Eastern Conference and have been red-hot of late, winning 14 of their last 15 contests.

Boston continued its winning ways on Thursday thanks to Ray Allen. The 32-year-old guard scored 21 points, including the go-ahead jumper with 31 seconds left as the Celtics completed a rare three-game sweep in Texas with a 94-90 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.

With the win, which followed victories against the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets, the Celtics became the first team to sweep the "Lone Star State" since the Sacramento Kings accomplished the feat in November of 2001.

The Hornets (46-21) are currently tied with the Houston Rockets (47-22) for the second spot in the Western Conference, one game behind the Los Angeles Lakers (48-41).

New Orleans improved its standing on Wednesday, forging a 90-69 victory over the Rockets, who suffered back-to-back losses for the first time since January 13 and 15.

Chris Paul continued his pursuit of NBA MVP honors by logging his sixth straight double-double, scoring 21 points while dishing out 10 assists to lead the Hornets.