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Celtics rally past Nets without three stars

Oct 17, 2008 - 2:39 AM EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) -- The Boston Celtics were lost early without the "Big Three," but Tony Allen did more than pick up the slack.

Allen scored 32 points to help the Celtics overcome an early 14-point deficit en route to a 111-108 victory over the New Jersey Nets in preseason action Thursday.

The Celtics were without Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, all of whom participated in pregame warm-ups but were rested by coach Doc Rivers.

Tony Allen made 11-of-18 from the field and 10-of-12 at the free-throw line to pace Boston, which was held without a field goal over the first five minutes of the opening quarter and fell behind, 17-3.

Eddie House knocked down five 3-pointers in nearly 25 minutes, scoring 21 points on 8-of-13 from the field for Boston. Second-year guard Gabe Pruitt also added 14 points and seven assists for the Celtics.

Vince Carter scored 19 points for the Nets, who also got 15 points Yi Jianlian. A 6-11 forward who was acquired from Milwaukee in the offseason, Yi did not register a rebound in over 20 minutes before fouling out.

Rookie Brook Lopez added eight points and nine rebounds for New Jersey, which owned a 45-30 advantage on the boards but turned the ball over 25 times.