Wade scored 4 points in the final 5.5 seconds of regulation, appearing to clinch a Miami victory as he knocked Ray Allen off the ball for a steal and dunk for a 101-99 lead with 0.6 seconds left. But the Celtics called a timeout and Pierce lofted the inbounds pass from in front of the scorer’s table to Rondo, who leaped over Mario Chalmers to bank in the tying points.
“We’ve been working on that play for a long time, actually since last year,’’ Rondo said. “As soon as Wade stole the ball I knew exactly which play we were going to run. Great pass, it was perfect, threw it right in front of the rim - just had to catch it and lay it in. He wanted me to dunk it but I was like, ‘Nah, I don’t want to miss a dunk for the game, just try to lay it in.’ ’’
The Celtics hoped for both Pierce (17 points in 43 minutes) and Rondo (25 points in 50 minutes) to be able to pace themselves on this trip, which continues in Atlanta tomorrow and concludes in Toronto Sunday. But it was all hands on deck with Marquis Daniels (wrist), Kevin Garnett (knee), and Eddie House (flu-like symptoms) out, and three players in foul trouble early in the second half.
The Celtics never solved Wade, who scored 18 points in the first quarter and piled up fouls on both Ray and Tony Allen, who had four by the third quarter. But the Celtics were able to limit the rest of the Heat.
Wade dunked off a steal to start the overtime. But the Celtics scored 7 successive points over a 3:30 stretch, taking a 5-point lead on Rondo’s drive. Wade’s 3-pointer out of a timeout cut the Miami deficit to 108-106 with 51.3 seconds on the clock. Then Rondo’s one-hander made it 110-106 with 34.3 seconds left.
Wade missed a 3-pointer and Ray Allen clinched the result with two foul shots with 16.4 seconds left as the American Airlines Arena crowd cleared out and handful of fans started a “Let’s go Celtics’’ chant.
“What a great win - we had it in our hands and then we literally gave it back,’’ coach Doc Rivers said. “Then, for us to just keep believing - what a great win.’’
The Celtics appeared to be coasting to victory in the third quarter.
