Rajon Rondo returned to Boston for an NBA reunion and rose to the occasion.
Rondo fired in five triples en route to a season-high 29 points against his former team on Friday, leading the Dallas Mavericks to a 119-101 victory over the Boston Celtics.
Rondo had a storybook script in an emotionally charged first visit to Bean Town since being dealt to Dallas on December 19.
"Obviously it was a special day," said Rondo, a four-time All-Star with the Celtics. "I'm emotionally tired and physically drained.
"It was a tough game to get through but my outside shot was going in a little bit tonight, my teammates came through for me and we got the win."
Rondo was welcomed with a warm reception by appreciative fans at the sold-out TD Garden when introduced in the starting line-up.
Normally the pass-first Rondo looked for his shot and hit his first six, including three triples for 15 points, sparking the Mavs to a 31-17 cushion.
In between periods, Rondo was given a standing ovation and acknowledged the crowd with a wave after a touching tribute of his nine-year Celtics' career was beamed on the overhead scoreboard.
"No tears," Rondo admitted. "I watched a couple of glimpses of the video but I was trying to stay focused."
Dallas extended a 59-46 halftime lead to 92-64 after three quarters.
The Celtics stormed to within 97-87 midway through the final frame but Rondo bookended a pair of baskets in a 10-3 run and the Mavs held a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
Monta Ellis scored 22 points, German juggernaut Dirk Nowitzki added 17 and Tyson Chandler grabbed 16 rebounds in the Mavs' (24-10) fourth straight win.
Elsewhere:
- Golden State Warriors 126, Toronto Raptors 105: Stephen Curry had 32 points with 12 assists and the league-best Warriors (26-5) notched their 11th straight home win after knocking the Raptors out of first place in the East.
- Atlanta Hawks 98, Utah Jazz 92: Jeff Teague scored 25 points, Paul Millsap had 15 with 11 rebounds, and the visiting Hawks (24-8) moved atop the East after silencing the Jazz (11-22) for their 19th win in the last 22 games.
- New Orleans Pelicans 111, Houston Rockets 83: Ryan Anderson scored 22 points, Tyreke Evans added 21 and the Pelicans (17-16) routed the visiting Rockets (22-10).
- Cleveland Cavaliers 91, Charlotte Hornets 87: Kevin Love scored 27 points, Kyrie Irving added 23, and the visiting Cavs (19-14) snapped a three-game skid after beating the Hornets (10-24).
- Oklahoma City Thunder 109, Washington Wizards 102: Kevin Durant dropped in 34 points, Russell Westbrook added 22 and the Thunder reached the .500 mark for the first time this season (17-17).
- Brooklyn Nets 100, Orlando Magic 98: Mason Plumlee had 18 points with nine rebounds, and the visiting Nets (16-16) held off a late rally to beat the Magic (13-23) for their sixth win in the last seven games.
- Memphis Grizzlies 109, LA Lakers 106: Mike Conley had 19 points and nine assists, Marc Gasol netted 18 with 10 rebounds, and the visiting Grizzlies (24-8) escaped the Lakers when Kobe Bryant missed a potential game-tying triple at the buzzer.
- Detroit Pistons 97, New York Knicks 81: Brandon Jennings dropped in 29 points, Andre Drummond grabbed 17 rebounds and the visiting Pistons (9-23) ran their winning streak to a season-high four games after handing the Knicks (5-30) - minus Carmelo Anthony (sore left knee) - a 10th straight defeat for the second time this year.
- Indiana Pacers 94, Milwaukee Bucks 91: C.J. Miles scored 22 points, Roy Hibbert added 18, and the visiting Pacers (13-21) beat the Bucks (17-17) who received 20 points from Brandon Knight.
- Phoenix Suns 112, Philadelphia 76ers 96: Gerald Green and Markieff Morris fired in 21 points apiece, and the host Suns (19-16) beat the league-worst Sixers (4-27) despite Tony Wroten's game-high 28 points.
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