Surgical precision

After crumpling to the floor, a stunned Pierce remained crouched under the basket. Pierce said he blacked out briefly. After about a minute, he retreated to the bench with the help of trainer Ed Lacerte. As the medical staff examined Pierce, he repeatedly shook his head, trying to get his "nuts and bolts together." When asked how much pain he played through when taking the final shot, Pierce cracked a smile.

"I'm in pain right now," he said. "When I get my pill, [the pain] will stop . . . I took a little bit of a beating there at the end, but paid them back . . . I don't really pay attention to who's defending me. I think Ruben Patterson is a good defender, but I consider myself one of the best offensive players."

But Pierce almost didn't make it back onto the court to attempt the winning shot. His status for the final Boston possession was in such doubt that coach Doc Rivers drew up two plays, one with Jiri Welsch in the game and one for Pierce.

"Up until the referees blowing the whistle, Paul didn't think he was going back in," said Rivers. "He hadn't opened his eye yet. I was thinking, `What else could go wrong right here?' "

It had been a fourth quarter to forget for the Celtics, who led by as many as 20 points in the second and as many as 15 points midway through the third. Boston entered the final period ahead, 71-64, unable to stop Portland as it narrowed the gap behind Darius Miles (20 of 21 points in the second half). A layup by Patterson (10 points) gave the Trail Blazers their first lead, with 8:11 remaining.