Celtics find finishing touch

There was a lot of chatter on the Celtics' bench during the fourth quarter last night, much of it between Ryan Gomes and Sebastian Telfair. According to Gomes, the players told each other they "would not feel happy until the horn sounds." Throughout the final quarter, as Boston's lead stretched from 14 points to 17 to 21 to 25 to a game-high 29, Telfair and Gomes reminded each other to wait for the buzzer before entertaining any thoughts of a victory celebration.

Such extreme patience sounds silly in light of the Celtics' 114-88 rout of the Pacers at TD Banknorth Garden, but Telfair, Gomes, and Co. know all too well the disappointment of losing games they should have won. They also know Doc Rivers and Danny Ainge preach the value of patience. Patience with young players. Patience with the Celtics' sometimes absent-minded defense. Patience after a 2-6 start. Boston may still be searching for an identity and more wins, but if the team wants, it could adopt a time-tested mantra of "Good things come to those who wait."

At least that was the case last night as the Celtics came back from an early 8-point deficit, took control in the third quarter, and sustained their efforts in the fourth. Boston outscored Indiana, 67-43, in the second half, holding the visitors to 31 percent shooting during the final two quarters. Most impressively, Perkins shut down Jermaine O'Neal (8 points, 12 rebounds). In fact, the entire Indiana team struggled in the face of a Boston defense that was more consistent than it has been this season.

When asked if the blowout would give the Celtics a dose of confidence, Rivers said, "Well, I'll tell you Friday night late [after the game against Portland]. Then, I'll have an answer. But they needed the win. Just the win helps because we won because we played defense. Everybody dug down, guarded their own guy a lot, and helped defensively."

For a coach who has started almost every postgame press conference by emphasizing how much he believes in the Celtics, how he knows the team will be good this season, it was a surprisingly restrained, yet pragmatic, answer. Rivers and Ainge would have been easily forgiven last night if they shouted at all the non-believers, "Told you so." After all, the two men charged with turning around the Celtics have sounded drunk with optimism when discussing the team's future. The victory, particularly the third quarter, made Rivers and Ainge seem more like they know what they are talking about.

When Indiana opened the third quarter 0 for 9, Boston seized the opportunity and staged a 19-5 run. When Paul Pierce found Gomes for a dunk and 20-footer in quick succession to cap the spurt with 6:33 remaining in the third, the Celtics' 47-45 halftime lead had grown to a 66-50 advantage. The Celtics shot 60 percent (12 for 20) in the third, outrebounded the Pacers, 13-6, and fed off the scoring of Pierce, who poured in 14 of his game-high 32 points in the quarter. Boston led by as many as 16 on three occasions before starting the fourth ahead, 80-66.

Opening the fourth with a 3-pointer from the left corner in front of the Pacers' bench, Gerald Green set the tone for the quarter. At the other end, the Pacers struggled in much the same way they did in the third, beginning the period 0 for 8. Indiana did not score until Green committed a goaltending violation on a layup by Stephen Jackson (13 points) with 8:39 left. The next field goal came when Al Harrington (23 points) made a layup with 6:59 left. And when the Pacers weren't missing shots, they were committing fouls.

With every miss and every foul, the Celtics gained confidence that they would close it out. By the time Pierce beat the shot clock with an 18-footer that pushed Boston ahead, 97-72, Indiana was in no position to mount a comeback. In his postmortem, Pacers coach Rick Carlisle sounded a little like Rivers has in the past.

"I was a psych major in college and I read that Freud's definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over again and expecting the outcome to be different," said Carlisle. "I believe this team can change . . . I believe we can be a team that plays with intensity on the defensive end, and that can fuel our game and that will be our identity. I am going to keep preaching that to our team because I believe in them.

"Maybe these pieces don't fit together. I still think that they do, but you have to bring the commitment, you have to bring the unselfishness, and you have to bring the passion. Otherwise, you are going to get your [butt] kicked. That is the way it works in this league."

Boston knows Carlisle speaks the truth. But only time will tell if the Celtics have learned how to win after a number of tough losses, one buzzer-beater eight days ago against Charlotte, and one good half last night.

Shira Springer can be reached at springer@globe.com.