Celtics net big victory

With the win, and a loss by Cleveland, Boston (32-40) finished the night in eighth place by a half-game. The Celtics also snapped a nine-game losing streak to the Nets, including last season's playoff sweep. It is hard to forget New Jersey forced Boston out of the postseason the last two years. And entering last night, the Nets had won 12 of their last 13 meetings with the Celtics. But postgame, the Celtics found themselves thinking more about the future than anything else.

"The playoffs were on the line," said Paul Pierce, who scored 14 of his 34 points in the first quarter. "This win was important for us. We had a week off. We had lost two in a row. I probably would have come out [with a lot of intensity] regardless of who we played, just for the simple fact that we were a half-game out of eighth place. We needed a win and we got it."

Led by Pierce, Boston was a determined team that would not be denied when it took the floor. That determination was rewarded as the Celtics entered halftime ahead, 53-46, after leading by as many as 11 points early in the second quarter.

If one point was made clear during the first quarter, it was that the Celtics were more than ready and willing to play with postseason intensity. That showed most noticeably on the glass, where Boston finished the game with 20 second-chance points off 14 offensive rebounds.

But far more impressive than the Celtics' rebounding in the first quarter was the scoring of Pierce. During the quarter, it seemed as if Pierce would try to singlehandedly bring home a win. He did not miss a field goal attempt in the first, going 6 for 6. Interim head coach John Carroll commented that Pierce simply had "that look" in the first, the one that says "just give me the ball."