Celtics strike early to claim fifth consecutive win

TORONTO (Reuters) - The NBA champion Boston Celtics beat the Toronto Raptors 118-103 on Sunday, scoring the game's first 10 points on the way to their fifth successive victory.

Seven Celtics scored in double figures led by Ray Allen's 21 points, giving the Eastern Conference leaders their 13th victory in 15 games. Toronto, the Atlantic Division's worst team, dropped to 6-7.

"Tonight was one of the rare moments," Allen told reporters. "We took command of the game early and made sure that we made some plays."

Kevin Garnett, Rajon Rondo and Tony Allen each had 15 points for the Celtics. Kendrick Perkins added 12 and Paul Pierce and Eddie House got 11 each.

"For four quarters we were solid on both ends of the floor," Ray Allen said. "Rondo created a great tempo for us and got some easy looks."

Celtics coach Doc Rivers said Rondo's speed was a big factor.

"When he pushes the ball up the floor, every single possession, we score out of our sets and we score out of our routes, and that makes us really good offensively," Rivers told reporters.

Chris Bosh had 24 points for the Raptors, who have lost seven of their past 10 games.

"We just had a bad game," Raptors coach Sam Mitchell told reporters. "They executed well, they came out really aggressive against us and they kind of knocked us on our heels."

The Raptors were without forward Jermaine O'Neal for much of the game. O'Neal, who strained his surgically repaired left knee on Friday, left in the second quarter and did not return.

"I just didn't really have any stability," O'Neal told reporters. "It was just a tough turnaround not being 48 hours later. ... I was told it was getting better but it just wasn't enough to play in a game tonight."

(Writing by Gene Cherry in Salvo, North Carolina; Editing by Ed Osmond)