By BRIAN MAHONEY
AP Basketball Writer

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.(AP) -- Resting Kevin Garnett wasn't nearly
enough. The Boston Celtics would've had to sit Paul Pierce and
Ray Allen, too, to make this a fair fight.

Pierce scored 24 points in 28 minutes and the Celtics quickly
turned a mismatch on paper into just that on the court, beating
the New Jersey Nets 111-87 on Wednesday night.

Allen added 15 points and Rajon Rondo had 11 points and 14
assists for the Celtics, who are playing without All-Star
Garnett (right knee) and reserve Rasheed Wallace (sore left
foot), but didn't need them in a matchup of one of the NBA's top
teams and by far its worst.

Boston made 10 of its first 11 shots and barely slowed up from
there, building a 36-point lead during its highest-scoring first
half of the season and cruising to its 11th straight victory
over the Nets (3-35).

"We needed to get off to a good start and that's what we talked
about before the game began," Boston coach Doc Rivers said.
"With a tough back-to-back coming and we're down on bodies, a
team that's been struggling, our whole thought was if we can get
off to a good start maybe we could get other guys rest. It all
came on the defensive end first and then the ball movement in
the first half was as good as we can get."

Yi Jianlian scored 19 points and Brook Lopez had 18 points and
10 rebounds for the Nets, who lost their sixth straight and were
as far away from the Celtics on the court as they are in the
standings.

"They came out and hit first and for those two quarters, we
didn't hit back," Nets point guard Devin Harris said. "They hit
open jump shots, they got in the paint, they drove. They pretty
much got whatever they wanted. We didn't take a stand on the
defensive end. To give up 70 points in a half, it's tough to win
any game."

Boston had struggled lately, mostly without Garnett, and lost
five of eight. The Celtics were back in their dominant form in
this one, giving their starters plenty of rest before a game
Thursday against Chicago, the team that pushed them to seven
games in a thrilling first-round series last season.

"This team, we've been very resilient all year, no matter who,
or how, or what," Ray Allen said. "You go out and get ready for
the game, everybody knows what the game plan is and win or loss,
the next game you've got to bounce back."

The Celtics already had 20 points by the midway point of the
first quarter and went nearly five minutes between their first
and second missed shots, both by Brian Scalabrine, who is
starting for Garnett. Boston didn't have a player other than
Scalabrine miss until Glen Davis was off on a layup with 2:35
left in the period.

Boston led 38-22 after one, and the second quarter was even more
lopsided. A sensational alley-oop from Pierce to Tony Allen, who
soared in from the baseline to catch the high pass to slam it
down, was the highlight of the Celtics' 14 of 20 shooting
effort. Meanwhile, New Jersey was 3 of 17 (18 percent) in the
period.

"We've got the Bulls coming in, they're playing pretty well of
late, and it was just important we got a win, regardless of how
we did it," Pierce said. "We know Jersey's been struggling, so
we want to keep them struggling."

Pierce appeared to land awkwardly after he was fouled with 5:55
left, but he stayed in to make the free throws, then nailed a
3-pointer that made it 55-27. Ray Allen was left all alone for a
layup off an inbound pass as time expired, giving the Celtics a
fifth double-figure scorer and a 71-35 bulge.

A frustrated Harris then let his teammates have it at in the
locker room.

"Everybody was pretty upset at halftime. Devin was pretty
upset," Nets forward Chris Douglas-Roberts said. "(Coach Kiki
Vandeweghe) came in with a speech basically saying we've got to
turn things around. Devin, it wasn't a speech. He was just
letting off some frustration. It was good. It was the first time
I've seen him let of frustration like that. I'd rather see
that."

NOTES: Rivers was fined $25,000 by the NBA for an argument with
officials that led to two quick technicals and an ejection in a
loss to Atlanta on Monday. Rivers said the league called him and
told him the ruling on the court was incorrect. "They admit that
the ... call was wrong," Rivers said. "Of all the fines I've
ever had, this is by far the most disappointing. I just don't
get this one. I watched a couple of coaches last week run out on
the floor and no fine. I get fined for being right." ...
Vandeweghe thinks it will be a week or so before Shawne Williams
is in "any kind of condition to compete." New Jersey acquired
the troubled Williams from Dallas on Monday along with Kris
Humphries for Eduardo Najera. "We're not pulling any punches,"
Vandeweghe said. "We told him this is a chance to revitalize his
career, this is a second chance. He was excited."