Boston 88, Detroit 103 - Celtics Drop Third Straight at the Palace

The Boston Celtics matched the New England Patriots and lost by 15 points Sunday night.

The Detroit Pistons defended their home court by lowering a 103-88 beating on the visitors.

While the loss wasn't quite as meaningful as the Patriots' season-ending AFC Championship loss, it was another depressing effort for the Celtics.

After a tough overtime loss against the Chicago Bulls, it appeared Boston was continuing their recent high level of play, but a second loss in three games to a weak opponent begs to differ.

The Celtics have no business getting blown out by teams like the Detroit Pistons and New Orleans Hornets, yet that is what is happening right now.

Boston shot under 40 percent as a team, led by Rajon Rondo's 4-of-16 showing. Rondo came close to another triple-double, but it wasn't pretty as he finished with eight points, 15 assists and nine rebounds.

The offense again didn't come from another familiar place, with Paul Pierce scoring only 10 points. Kevin Garnett chipped in 16, but had serious trouble stopping Greg Monroe and Andre Drummond. Boston's bench was the bright spot, with 16 points from Courtney Lee and 15 from Jeff Green.

The Celtics drop back to an even 20-20 on the season, but get to face more weak competition in the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday.

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You can follow Mike Walsh on Twitter @3rdStringWalsh