Raining points: Nets 101, Celtics 93

I guess when it rains, it pours.

The Celtics (40-38) couldn't stop the Nets tonight, falling by a final of 101-93.

Boston started off well as they dictated the pace of the game and shot close to 50% for the first half. After that, it was all down hill and there was no stopping Deron Williams. The Celtics swapped baskets with the Nets for the majority of the second half and were unable to get consecutive stops on the defensive end.

Here's a recap:

The good:

* Paul Pierce did all he could to keep the Celtics in the game. Pierce finished with a team-high 23 points on an efficient 7-of-11 from the floor including 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. The captain scored 13 points in the third quarter alone.

* The Celtics held their own on the offensive glass. They edged the Nets in this category, 10-9. Hey, gotta start somewhere, right?

The bad:

* Jeff Green had a terrible night. He scored 11 points on an abysmal 4-of-17 from the field. Just one of those nights.

* Avery Bradley struggled mightily covering Deron Williams, a feat that not many have had success with lately. Bradley picked up 5 fouls in 10 minutes and never got into a rhythm.

* With Paul Pierce being the exception, Celtics starters combined to go 15-of-42 from the floor, which translates to a mere 36%. Yikes

* Each time the Celtics have played the Nets, the team that won on the boards won the game. That was the case once again tonight. Brooklyn outrebounded Boston 39-37.

* When you allow three players from the other team to score at least 20 points, you don't put yourself in a good position to win. The Celtics let Brook Lopez (21), Deron Williams (29) and Joe Johnson (20) do that.

Miscellaneous:

* Interesting to see Shavlik Randolph as the first big off the bench for the Celtics. It not only shows the increased confidence Doc Rivers appears to have with Randolph, but it could be a sign of things to come. Going forward, it'll be interesting to see which big gets the nod first off the bench.

* The Nets are a very good basketball team. I said it back in November and I stick by it. The Celtics do not match up well with the Nets. With Atlanta winning and Milwaukee losing, it's looking more and more likely that the Celtics will end up with the seventh seed, which means a date with the New York Knicks in the first round. If the C's were to get past New York, they could see Brooklyn in the second round, and things could get a little dicey.

Boston will travel to South Beach tomorrow for a Friday night date with the Miami Heat.