Pierce attended the postgame news conference with both knees heavily wrapped but said he could have gone a few more innings.
"Actually, I feel pretty good," said Pierce, who scored 26 points after halftime, including 9 in overtime. "I could have played another quarter, I think."
The Celtics (31-9) appear to have recovered from a four-game losing streak, but they missed Tony Allen (ankle) and Kendrick Perkins (shoulder), who also will be absent for tomorrow's game against the Nets and a visit to New Jersey Saturday. Brian Scalabrine replaced Perkins at center, limiting the perimeter threat of Andrea Bargnani (23 points) in the first half.
But the Raptors adjusted tactically, limiting Ray Allen's offense after he scored 36 points against them in Toronto Sunday. But after Toronto led by as many as 12 points late in the first half and maintained a 10-point advantage late in the third quarter, the Celtics adjusted and gained momentum.
In fact, the Celtics appeared on the way to a regulation-time victory after dramatic shots by Garnett (with 3:14 remaining) and Allen (2:16) at the shot-clock buzzer, plus Rajon Rondo (1:56) with :03 on the shot clock, provided a 90-84 lead. Pierce had a chance to clinch the result, but he missed the first of two foul shots with 14.3 seconds to go, and Bargnani tied the score, 93-all, on a 3-pointer with a second left.
Pierce scored 70 seconds into overtime, a second-chance 3-pointer, and the Celtics increased the edge to 111-104 on a Garnett free throw with 27 seconds remaining.
"I thought in the first half, we got every shot we wanted and none went in," Rivers said. "But we still had no rhythm because they were scoring every single time down the floor and we were not going to win if that continued. Even if our shots were going in, we were not going to win the game."
Rivers, who has developed a friendship with Smoltz, also got into the baseball lingo mode, comparing the wins over the Raptors to a doubleheader sweep.
