Rajon Rondo's 26th career triple-double helped the Boston Celtics to a 100-89 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats.
Rondo finished with 17 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds against the Bobcats as the Celtics won their sixth straight game.
"I'm getting a little bit older and the younger guys are coming in, and I may have a mark on my back being an older guy, having made a couple of All-Star (games)," the Associated Press quoted Rondo as saying.
"I have a target on my back every night so I just want to go out and do what I do best: run the show and make some shots."
For the Celtics, Paul Pierce was the top scorer with 19 points and six assists, Avery Bradley had 16 points and Jeff Green finished with 11 points off the bench.
Rondo, who ended up with his third triple-double of the season, said it was nice to see his side get back to winning ways after a stuttering start.
"It's not fun losing. Since we've been winning the locker room is a little bit more relaxed, guys aren't as tense," Rondo said. "We lost a couple of games and we never got down.
"When we play, we play loose. We have smiles on the court. ... It's nice to see that swagger on the court again since we've been winning."
For the Bobcats, Hakim Warrick and Ramon Sessions scored 16 points each and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist had 10 points and eight rebounds, while Gerald Henderson also finished with 10 points but could not stop his team from losing their third consecutive game.
Bobcats coach Mike Dunlap emphasized on the need to strive hard to win the coming games.
"You can't lay down. Nobody's going to feel sorry for you," Dunlap said. "You have to come every night and compete and hope for the best."
Boston dominated the game right from the start as they scored 13 out of the game's first 15 points. Rondo had five assists and seven points in the opening period with 6:17 left.
The Celtics outshined the Bobcats 28-18 in the first quarter and again outscored them in the second with 28-27 to enter the second half with an 11-point lead.
However, Kidd-Gilchrist scored seven points in a 9-1 run for the Bobcats to cut the deficit, before his dunk tied the scores as the Bobcats scored 13 of the first 15 points in the third period.
"Every coach I talk to about (the Bobcats) says the same thing: 'They just keep playing,'" Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "It's hard to do but it's nice to see."
With the help of Garnett's two free throws the Celtics scored the next seven points to end the third quarter with a 76-70 lead.
After that Charlotte never looked comfortable, with the Celtics outscoring them 24-19 in the fourth quarter to win the game by 11 points.
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