BOSTON, Reuters) – Point guard Rajon Rondo, the NBA’s assist leader, turned into a scorer yesterday and paced the Boston Celtics to a 91-80 triumph over their Eastern Conference rivals, the Orlando Magic.
Rondo scored 11 of his team-high 26 points in the third quarter when the East-leading Celtics (38-12) took control to beat the Magic for the second time in the third and final meeting between the teams.
“I was trying to be aggressive and attack the rim. I took advantage of the opportunities I had (today),” Rondo told reporters.
“Things weren’t going our way in the first half – a lot of technical fouls were called. We had to keep our composure.”
Boston reserve Marquis Daniels suffered a neck injury in the second quarter and was taken off the court on a stretcher and sent to the hospital.
The Garden fell silent as Daniels lay motionless on the court, though the Celtics seemed to rally behind their fallen teammate.
