Celtics preseason tour begins with loss at Mullins

By Mark Murphy / Celtics Notebook Thursday, October 9, 2008 - Added 7m ago ] kicked off their three-city barnstorming tour through New England last night, and despite a subs-heavy 98-92 loss to Philadelphia, the rowdy college crowd was still able to feed on a little inspiration. Rookie Bill Walker brought the crowd, as well as his own teammates, to their feet with a pair of first-quarter dunks, the latter a quick riser over veteran center and former Celtic Theo Ratliff [stats]. Four players scored between 10 and 12 points, with Leon Powe the highest. Patrick O’Bryant, starting in place of Kendrick Perkins [stats] (shoulder), demonstrated a solid inside game with 10 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. Though Tony Allen broke an 87-87 tie by splitting the lane for a three-point play with 2:07 left, the Sixers took a 93-92... [read full story]