First depression

"They're going to play until the end," said Pierce (35 points, 13 rebounds, 8 assists) of the Sixers. "They're not going to give in. They easily could have given in once we got up, 15, 16 points, and the crowd got into it. But you know, a Coach O'Brien team, like when he was here, they're going to keep fighting until that final buzzer sounds, and that's what they did."

As new Celtics coach Doc Rivers walked off the court at the end of the game, he swiped at the air with his right fist and said, "Damn," cursing the one that got away. Rivers knew the Celtics let a win slip from their grasp by losing focus and deviating from what worked when they opened the third quarter with an 18-2 run. The players thought the turning point came at the end of the third with the starters on the bench for a rest, leaving players such as rookie Al Jefferson and second-year point guard Marcus Banks on the floor. Rivers called the switch to younger players at the end of the quarter "a mistake."

But Rivers could not envision how the move would reverse momentum, or how Boston would struggle from the floor in the fourth quarter. The Celtics took an 83-71 advantage into the final period, then proceeded to go 3 for 17 from the floor. They missed four 3-pointers. They missed layups. They even missed 5 of 11 free throws.

Sometimes they didn't even make it to the rim or the line. The Celtics committed four turnovers that led to 7 points for the Sixers in the fourth. Overall, Boston committed 19 turnovers that led to 26 points for Philadelphia. Another 19 points came on second-chance baskets. Rivers did the math, the Sixers scored 45 of their 98 points because the Celtics struggled on the glass and failed to take care of the ball, and he was not happy.