Jan. 7, 1965 - The Boston Celtics’ tempo was so fast tonight that Sam Jones (left) ran right out of his shoes.
The newest superstar of the world champs tossed in most of his 33 points before his sneakers wore out and, in so doing, he led a Celtic blitz that netted the club’s 10th straight victory.
An L.A. Sports Arena gathering of 13,776 saw Boston’s 42-point blast in the first period offset a magnificent performance by Elgin Baylor and deal the Lakers a 112-104 defeat.
The way Bill Russell & Co. looked, it appeared they just might never lose another game.
“It’s a little too early to call this our best team,” said coach Red Auerbach, who has coached six straight teams to world titles, “but now that Sam has reached greatness and Willie Naulls has learned to play defense, we are a fine team.
“We didn’t start any better tonight than we did last night, but we’ve been real hot lately.
“You can’t give Naulls too much credit. He’s a tiger on defense now, and it hasn’t hurt his scoring. Well, you saw him.”
Indeed, Willie never looked better as he teamed with Jones and Tom Sanders in the fantastic opening drive that netted the Celts a 29-6 lead after just 7½ minutes of play.
“Of course, they were great,” said unhappy Laker coach Fred Schaus, “but we contributed to our own downfall by not playing tough defense at the start. You just can’t let those guys get an opening.
“I’m still not convinced we can’t beat them. Maybe we’ll prove it Saturday.”
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