BOSTON (AP) - Paul Pierce scored 26 points on nearly perfect
shooting and the Boston Celtics roared back from a rough road trip
to beat the Washington Wizards 108-103 on Friday night.

The Celtics went 1-3 on their West Coast swing after the best
29-game start in NBA history, 27-2. They were in charge from the
start Friday on their homecourt where they're 18-1. Boston's lead
reached 10 points with 4:15 left in the first quarter and stayed in
double digits the rest of the way.

Pierce made his first nine shots and all five 3-point attempts
before missing his final shot, a 3-pointer, but Kendrick Perkins
converted the offensive rebound with 1:20 remaining in the third
quarter. Pierce left the game with 48 seconds left in the period
with the Celtics ahead 81-55 and never returned.

Nick Young led the Wizards with 15 points, and Antawn Jamison
had 14.