NBA Game Summary - Boston at New Jersey

04.9.2005

East Rutherford, NJ (Basketball News) - Vince Carter was nearly unstoppable with a season-high 45 points on 18-of-32 shooting and the New Jersey Nets rolled to a 99-86 win over the Boston Celtics at Continental Airlines Arena.

Carter also buried 7-of-9 three-pointers, grabbed seven rebounds and notched four steals for New Jersey, which pulled within a game of Philadelphia and Cleveland for the final two Eastern Conference playoff spots.

"Vince had a great game," Celtics assistant Tony Brown said after the game. Brown filled in for head coach Doc Rivers, who was ejected less than two minutes into the game after collecting his second technical foul.

Jason Kidd scored just four points, but handed out a season-high 17 assists and pulled down nine rebounds in the win — New Jersey’s third in a row and sixth in seven games.

Paul Pierce led Boston with 16 points. Ricky Davis netted 14 points off the bench for the Atlantic Division-leading Celtics, who had their brief two-game winning streak come to an end. Boston is currently third in the conference.

The Nets grabbed a 13-4 lead on a Carter three-pointer and eventually carried a 37-19 advantage into the second quarter. Carter buried a jumper with 4 1/2 minutes left in the half to stake New Jersey to a 50-30 cushion. The Celtics rallied, but trailed 55-44 at halftime. Carter led all scorers with 29 points at the break, while Pierce paced Boston with nine points.

Carter’s alley-oop layin with 5 1/2 minutes to go in the third quarter extended New Jersey’s lead to 68-53. Boston exchanged baskets the rest of the way but trailed, 85-63, after 36 minutes of action.

Kidd’s layup with about five minutes left in the game made it 97-71 and the Nets cruised to the lop-sided win.

The Nets have won six of their last nine home games...Boston has dropped five of its last six contests at Continental Airlines Arena...Carter’s career best output was 51 points against the Phoenix Suns in 2000. The Nets’ franchise single-game record is 52 points, held jointly by Mike Newlin against Boston in December 1979 and Ray Williams at Detroit in April 1982...Rivers was hit with consecutive technical fouls by Tom Donaghy for arguing an offensive foul call against Boston forward Antoine Walker.

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