• 
• 

Paul Pierce scored 18 points, Kevin Garnett had 16 and the Celtics rolled to their ninth straight victory by routing the Toronto Raptors 90-77 on Sunday.

 By holding the host Raptors to a season-low point total and just 39 per cent field goal shooting, the Celtics improved to a league-best 20-2 record - their fastest start since the 1963-64 title season.

 The Celtics have relied on their league-best defence - allowing opponents a stingy 86.5 points per game - nearly 14 points less than their offence is generating.

 "Our philosophy is that defence is going to win games for us," said Garnett, following the wire-to-wire victory. "We're trying to have the defence fuel the offence, and it's been working."

   Added Pierce: "That's going to be our staple pretty much all year long. We're going to take pride on the defensive end."

   Rajon Rondo added 14 points and reserve Eddie House contributed 11 for the Celtics, who were without starting guard Ray Allen (sore right ankle) for the second straight game.

 Chris Bosh scored 17 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for the Raptors (14-11) whose four-game winning streak came to an end. Jamario Moon netted 13 points and Kris Humphries chipped in with 12.

 "Their defence is very aggressive," Bosh said. "They are very long and athletic and the plays we usually make just weren't there. What we need to take from this game is to see how they play defence."

   The Celtics led 27-17 after the first quarter and opened a 21-point cushion en route to a 50-36 halftime cushion.

 The Raptors trailed 71-54 heading into the final frame, but opened on a 7-0 run to pull within 10. However, Garnett hit a jumper, and Pierce sandwiched two baskets around a three-pointer by House, pushing the lead to 80-63 with 5:52 left.

 The Celtics never allowed the lead to dip below double digits the rest of the way.

 "They made an adjustment and got a couple of buckets and started to make their way back," Garnett said. "We adjusted to what they were doing and never looked back from there."

   Elsewhere:

   Detroit Pistons 109, Golden State Warriors 87    Tayshaun Prince scored 23 points, Chauncey Billups had 19, and the Pistons romped to their ninth victory in the last 11 games.

 Antonio McDyess had 14 points and 11 rebounds for Central-Division leading Detroit (17-7), which built a commanding 58-35 halftime cushion en route to the easy win.

 Matt Barnes led the visiting Warriors (13-11) with 15 points off the bench. However, Baron Davis finished with just two points - well below his team-leading 23-point season average.

 Portland Trail Blazers 116, Denver Nuggets 105    Brandon Roy collected 26 points and 11 assists, while Channing Frye had 18 of his 20 in the opening half, leading the surging Trail Blazers to their season-high seventh straight victory.

 Travis Outlaw chipped in with 17 points off the bench for Portland (12-12) which is on its best run since the 2002-03 season.

 Allen Iverson netted 38 points and Carmelo Anthony finished with 19 for Denver (14-10) which had won its previous nine home games against Portland, dating back to February 26, 2003.

 LA Lakers 113, LA Clippers 92    Kobe Bryant scored 32 points despite a strained groin, and backup guard Sasha Vujacic fired in all 14 of his points in the final quarter, as the Lakers regrouped to pull away from Clippers for their fifth win in the last six outings.

 Luke Walton had a season-high 15 points while Andrew Bynum accumulated 14 points, nine rebounds and six blocks for the Lakers (14-9) who outscored their Staples Centre co-tenants 31-16 in the final period.

 Corey Maggette led the Clippers (9-14) with 21 of his 27 points in the third period, including a 55-foot desperation heave that sliced an 18-point deficit to six. Chris Kaman had 18 points and 16 boards.

By Paul Levine, dpa