Sunday, the Truth and his teammates were reminded that one play made -- or not made -- can decide the outcome between powerhouse teams.

In the Celtics’ clash with the Western Conference power Spurs, it was Tim Duncan’s bunch that made the plays down the stretch, and Paul’s 19 points and eight rebounds could not prevent a 105-99 loss at TD Bank North Garden.

“When you play the top teams in the league, it comes down to the little things,” Paul told the Boston Globe. “I just thought the last couple of games at home it was 1- or 2-point games. Defensive transition late in the game, covering for one another [defensively], one possession [situations], it’s like the playoffs. One play can kill you. Every possession counts, and we’ve got to understand that when we play against the top-tier teams like the Spurs and the Lakers.”

No. 34 struggled to find his stroke in the early going, missing his first two shots before getting on the board with just over seven minutes remaining in the first.  But it was the Truth who led the charge in the third quarter, going 3-4 and pulling down five boards. His lights-out defense helped hold the Spurs to just 14 points in the frame, and put the Celtics up by a bucket heading into the fourth.

Paul battles a pair of Spurs on Sunday (Getty Images).

The teams that appeared so evenly matched heading into the game were never separated by more than four points throughout the fourth quarter, and Paul chipped in with a pair of buckets to keep the Celtics even.

But with the Celtics leading by a point heading into the game’s final minute, the “little things” Paul spoke of in his postgame interview came back to bite Boston. Spurs guard Roger Mason Jr. connected on a three-pointer to give the Spurs a two-point lead, and a botched inbounds pass gave the Spurs the ball, and helped them to pull away and hand the Celtics their second-straight home loss.

BIG IN THE APPLE
No. 34 did his best to follow the performances of Kobe Bryant and Lebron James at Madison Square Garden earlier in the week, pouring in 26 points and grabbing four boards as the Celtics topped the Knicks 110-100 Friday night.
It was one of the Truth’s signature shooting performances of the season, the captain finishing 8-13 and 9-10 from the free-throw line.

After notching only two points in the first quarter, a seven-point second period from Paul couldn’t help the Celtics from trailing by one, and seemingly feeling the effects of their loss to the Lakers the night before.

A  38-point final period, headlined by seven points from the Truth, crushed the Knicks hopes for a victory over the defending champs, and sent the Celtics back to Boston with a 110-100 victory.

“It was a big win,’’ Paul told the Boston Globe after playing 43 minutes in the victory. “For one, I thought we were mentally and physically drained coming into this game, especially after the tough loss. It took us a while. We got off to a slow start but this team continues to find ways to win.’‘

NEXT UP
Paul and the Celtics hit the road to take on the New Orleans Hornets Wednesday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 PM Eastern Time.

RELATED STORIES
Mason’s 3, Ginobili’s steal help Spurs Beat Celtics (AP, February 8, 2009)
http://www.nba.com/games/20090208/SASBOS/recap.html
Spurs of the moment (Boston Globe, February 9, 2009)
http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2009/02/09/spur...
Garnett makes up for lost time (Boston Globe, February 7, 2009)
http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/celtics/articles/2009/02/07/garn...
Pierce leads Celtics past Knicks (AP, February 6, 2009)
http://www.nba.com/games/20090206/BOSNYK/recap.html
 

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