Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is back here tomorrow night.
"I'm just playing aggressive, man," said Garnett, who made 11 of 17 field goal attempts and had 9 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 blocks. "I try not to think, try not to react, and be aggressive."
The Celtics are now 9-0 at home during the postseason. They last lost a home game March 24 against Philadelphia. Since then, they have won 15 straight.
"They haven't lost a game; they should be confident," said Pistons guard Chauncey Billups, who struggled with 9 points and 2 assists. "They have been very good at home. We usually are a really good team. We didn't have a good game today, but we look forward to Thursday."
The Celtics were playing their 13th game since April 26. The Pistons were playing their first in a week. So one big question entering Game 1 was: What was more beneficial, the Celtics' rhythm or the Pistons' rest? After Boston's victory, rhythm seemed like the early winner in that debate.
"I like the rhythm of every other day, and I've been saying that for a while," said Celtics coach Doc Rivers. "A lot of people talked about fatigue. Obviously, we would rather not have gone through 14 games. But I still think it's helped us, I really do."
Pistons forward Tayshaun Prince, who scored a team-high 16 points, said, "As far as the long layoff, you never know what's best. You can't blame that."
Two days after scoring 41 points in a Game 7 win over Cleveland, Paul Pierce scored 22 points and added 6 rebounds and 6 assists. During Sunday's win, Garnett said, he got out of the way and let Pierce go offensively. And last night, it was vice versa, as Pierce made way.
"We wanted to establish Kevin," Pierce said. "We know the success he's had against Detroit. We feel like Kevin has an advantage almost every night, especially on the one-on-one or on the block, on the wing, so we try to get him the ball and establish that."
Garnett scored a team-high 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting as Boston managed a slim 41-40 halftime lead. The Celtics shot 51.4 percent from the field and scored 26 points in the paint in the half. The Pistons shot only 38.7 percent but stayed close by making 14 free throws to Boston's 3.
