Celtics lose West, but beat New Jersey

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Thursday, November 25, 2010

GoLocalProv Sports Team

They won the game, but lost yet another player to injury Thursday.

A broken wrist suffered by Delonte West overshadowed an otherwise superb night for the Boston Celtics, who rode Shaquille O’Neal’s season-high 25 points in an 89-83 come-from-behind win over New Jersey at the TD Garden.

The Nets (5-10) led by as many as 10 points in the third quarter, but the Celtics (11-4) exploded in the fourth as they won their second consecutive game since suffering a minor two-game losing streak on the road last week.

O’Neal’s big night and an impressive performance by Paul Pierce, who finished with 18 points, helped erase some of the negativity surrounding the loss of West. The Celtics’ backup guard broke his wrist after crashing to the floor following a layup late in the first half. Boston is also playing without starting point guard Rajon Rondo, who is suffering from a hamstring injury.

Ray Allen chipped in with 15 points for Boston while guards Nate Robinson and Marquis Daniels combined for nearly 48 minutes in Rondo’s absence. As for O’Neal, he shot 9-of-10 from the floor and also finished with 11 rebounds. The 25 he scored Thursday were the most he’s scored since the end of the 2008-09 season.

New Jersey’s backcourt duo of Anthony Morrow (18) and Devin Harris (20) combined for 38 points 13-of-21 shooting. Boston will take the next six days off before hosting the struggling Miami Heat on Tuesday night. Miami lost to Orlando on Thursday and is now in the midst of its first three-game losing streak of the season.