NEW YORK - Rajon Rondo was tied with a game-high nine points in the opening quarter, but the Boston Celtics were outshot badly by the New York Knicks and trail 34-23 after twelve minutes of play at Madison Square Garden.
Rondo made 2-of-5 field goals for Boston, which shot just 35.7 percent in the period. Kevin Garnett had five points and Keyon Dooling chipped in with four points off the bench for the Celtics.
Carmelo Anthony also scored nine points for New York, which shot 52.4 percent in the first quarter. Iman Shumpert scored seven points off the bench and Amare Stoudemire added five points and two boards for the Knicks.
Boston fell behind early, trailing 17-9 with just under seven minutes to play in the first. However, the C's were able to cut the Knicks' lead to three points, 19-16, with 3:50 to go. The Knicks closed out the quarter on a 15-7 run.
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