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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
MIAMI (AP) – With Boston down by 12 points in the fourth
quarter, the Celtics' Paul Pierce wanted the ball. His coach and
teammates were more than eager to grant his request.
|  | | Paul Pierce scored 14 of Boston's final 20 points to save the Celtics on Tuesday. |
Pierce scored 33 points – including 14 in the fourth – and added
nine rebounds as the Celtics beat Miami 82-77 Tuesday night,
handing the Heat their third loss in four games since Alonzo
Mourning's return.
"We rode our leading scorer tonight," Boston's Antoine Walker
said. "We just put the ball in his hands and let him do what he
does best. He had his jump shot working tonight and that's why he is
one of the best scorers in this league."
Antoine Walker added 20 points, four rebounds and five assists
for Boston, which remained tied with Indiana for the eighth and
final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Behind Pierce, the Celtics erased a 12-point, fourth-quarter
deficit. Boston trailed 74-62 with 7:47 to play before closing the
game on a 20-3 run.
Pierce sandwiched a driving layup between two 15-footers to
spark the comeback. Then he hit three 19-foot jumpers in a row to
put the Celtics on top 81-76. He also added a pair of free throws.
"The team showed tremendous confidence in me down the stretch,
and I wanted to deliver," Pierce said. "It was a game we just
couldn't lose."
Anthony Mason led the Heat with 16 points and scored the team's
final three points -- all from the free throw line. Brian Grant
added 14 points for Miami, which dropped behind the New York Knicks
and into the No. 4 playoff spot.
Mourning, playing his fourth game since returning from a kidney
disease, had 11 points, four rebounds and three blocked shots. He
looked closer to returning to his old form.
The 6-foot-10 center played 23 minutes. And with Mourning on the
floor, the Heat outscored the Celtics by 18 points.
But Mourning was on the bench for Boston's final run. Pierce was
6-of-10 shooting in the fourth and 11-of-23 for the game.
Mason took just one shot in the fourth, as did Grant and Tim
Hardaway.
"We should be at a stage with this team where we can close
games," Heat coach Pat Riley said. "This is the fourth
consecutive game where in the last six minutes we have had leads
and we don't close. We got outscored 20-3 after that last timeout.
Everyone was chest bumping, hooping and hollering. I think they
thought the game was over.
"We were ahead and that was it. That was the swan song for
us."
The Heat trailed by as many as 14 points in the third quarter,
56-42, but used a 32-6 run over the end of the third and the
beginning of the fourth to post the 12-point lead.
Walker scored 11 points in the second quarter, helping the
Celtics lead by seven at halftime, 45-38.
Boston opened the third with an 11-4 run to push its advantage
to 14 points. Walker banked in a 3-pointer, then Pierce followed
with a 3 from the corner.
Then Riley put his three big men -- Mourning, Grant and Mason --
in the game for their longest stint together since Mourning
returned last week. They played the next 2:43 together, helping
force five turnovers and sparking the Heat's 7-0 run.
"The lineup played well," Riley said. "Not only did we run,
but we changed some of the matchups and started to play. But we
lost it as quickly as we got it."
Game notes
Aside from Pierce and Walker, no other Boston player scored
in double figures. ... Hardaway's 3-pointer in the first quarter
extended Miami's NBA record for consecutive games with a 3 to 580.
... The Heat placed Duane Causwell on the injured list with a
sprained left ankle and activated center Todd Fuller.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Boston Clubhouse
Miami Clubhouse
RECAPS
Boston 82
Miami 77
Charlotte 103
New Jersey 88
New York 94
Orlando 82
Indiana 85
Phoenix 81
Toronto 100
Philadelphia 85
LA Lakers 96
Utah 88
Detroit 110
Chicago 83
Dallas 109
Houston 97
San Antonio 107
Seattle 89
Denver 94
Portland 92
Milwaukee 107
Sacramento 101
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