Pierce, Celtics Survive Game 5 Thriller

Trailing by 11 points in the fourth quarter, Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo led the Celtics back to force overtime. A supposedly injured Ben Gordon played more minutes than anyone else in the game, scoring 26 points, including more head-shaking shots down the stretch, and hitting three free throws to tie the game after being fouled by Tony Allen on a three point play. Pierce though, had the answer, and after Rajon Rondo fouled Brad Miller hard to prevent a layup, the Celtics escaped the crucial game five with a 106-104 victory to take a 3-2 series lead.

Frank Dell’Apa has the Bulls staggering at the end as a result of the efforts of Pierce and Rondo. Bill Doyle has working overtime finally paying off for the Celtics. Scott Souza looks at another moment of Truth at the Garden in the postseason. Jeff Howe has game five at a glance. Robert Lee has Pierce and Rondo proving to be the heroes once again for the Celtics.

Bob Ryan reviews another sensational game between the two clubs, in a series which has become an instant classic. Jeff Jacobs has Paul Pierce getting the last word in on the Bulls. Marc J. Spears has Pierce accepting the increased load last night and taking charge of the game. Steve Bulpett has Pierce saving the Celtics season with his clutch play. Lenny Megliola says that once again, crunch time is Pierce’s time. Jessica Camerato has the Celtics willing to play as long as it takes. Dan Guttenplan says that Danny Ainge has put together a resilient team.

Bill Burt says that Rajon Rondo gives the beaten up Celtics a punchers chance in any series. Paul Flannery says that the age of Rondo is clearly upon us.  Dan Ventura has Rondo sparking the Celtics with his play. Mike Fine says that in addition to Pierce and Rondo, we need to acknowledge the performance of Kendrick Perkins – 16 points, 19 rebounds, 7 blocks. Monique Walker has Ray Allen having to sit out the final five and a half minutes of regulation and the overtime after fouling out. Mike Petraglia has Allen battling the whistles all night long.

Tim Weisberg notes that the Bulls just couldn’t quite pull off the miracle this time. Julian Benbow looks at the night for Ben Gordon, who didn’t seem hampered at all by his hamstring injury. Bulpett is impressed by Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro in his rookie year as a coach. Ventura has Derrick Rose enjoying his time on the big stage. Steve Buckley has the Bulls steamed over Rondo’s last second foul on Brad Miller. Petraglia has Miller complaining that a flagrant wasn’t called on Rondo.

The Globe notebook has the Bulls wanting a flagrant foul called on Rajon Rondo. Murphy’s notebook has Ray Allen stuck on the bench after fouling out. Doyle’s notebook has Rivers getting fined again by the league for his comments about the officials. Souza’s notebook has more on the fine for Rivers. Lee’s notebook also reports on Rivers’ “ personal stimulus package” for the NBA.

Red Sox

All good things must come to an end, though the Red Sox likely would’ve preferred that their 11 game winning streak wasn’t ended on a dropped ball on a potential inning-ending play.

Amalie Benjamin has the Red Sox third error of the game proving to be too much last night. John Tomase says that plenty of factors contributed to last night’s loss. Kevin McNamara has one of the most basic spring training drills proving to be the downfall for the Red Sox.

Nick Cafardo examines another rocky outing for Brad Penny, and what it could mean for his future with the Red Sox. Michael Silverman has more on the woes of Penny. Joe Haggerty has Mike Lowell’s recovery beating expectations for the Red Sox. Silverman has Jonathan Papelbon working on perfecting a new delivery. McNamara says that Papelbon is proving that nobody’s perfect.

Benjamin’s notebook looks at the tweaks to the road uniforms for the Red Sox. Tomase’s notebook looks at an eventful return for Julio Lugo. Speier’s Five Things looks at the Red Sox first loss in two weeks.

Patriots

Mark Farinella has some leftover thoughts from the Patriots draft. With all the stiffs that the Patriots have added in free agency and the draft, Jim Donaldson says we shouldn’t expect the defense to be any better in ’09 and that the Patriots will be in danger of missing the playoffs for the second consecutive season. Christopher L. Gasper has Ellis Hobbs leaving town with no hard feelings towards the Patriots. Christopher Price profiles top pick Patrick Chung and his journey to the NFL.

Bruins

It will be the Hurricanes in round two for the Bruins. Mike Loftus has the series schedule. Stephen Harris has the Bruins working to ensure that the long layoff won’t be a problem. Nancy Marrapese-Burrell has big baseball fan Aaron Ward making big contributions to the Bruins back line. Haggerty has his latest edition of The Hagg Bag.