Looking forward to a reunion

WALTHAM -- Mired in a franchise-record 18-game losing streak, the Celtics have a Valentine's Day date with the Milwaukee Bucks at the TD Banknorth Garden tonight. The good news is that Paul Pierce and Wally Szczerbiak should be reunited for the first time in nearly two months.

The last time Pierce and Szczerbiak suited up together was Dec. 16, when the Celtics earned a 106-100 road victory over the Charlotte Bobcats. Pierce had 35 points in 39 minutes and Szczerbiak had 2 points in 15 minutes.

Szczerbiak, who has dealt with ankle issues nearly all season, hasn't played since spraining his right ankle contesting a 3-pointer in a loss to Miami last Wednesday.

"It wasn't quite as bad of a sprain," he said. "We just made sure we got all the swelling out. I've been doing some court work for the last couple of days and I wanted to get a good, hard practice in and go through everything, and I should be available."

Pierce, who missed 24 games with a stress reaction in his left foot and an elbow infection, strained a hip muscle in his second game back, a 109-107 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves Sunday. The captain rode a stationary bike after practice and said he felt OK to go against the Bucks.

"Obviously, there was a scare in the game the other night, but it looks like he is going to be fine," said coach Doc Rivers. "He didn't go the whole practice. He went in and out, but he did a lot of good things in practice.

"Each day you can tell he's getting back. He's still not where he's [usually] at. I thought at the end of the game the other night he probably gave it up more than he usually would have. You could see the timing is still not there. That was as close to the old Paul as we're going to get until he's 100 percent."

Said Szczerbiak, "Hopefully, with the two of us back and getting healthy and the team kind of coming around, we can start winning some games."

The Bucks represent the Celtics' best shot at avoiding NBA infamy. Milwaukee entered last night having dropped 17 of its last 20 games and has played the last 18 without leading scorer Michael Redd, who strained his left patellar tendon Jan. 5. (Coincidentally, that is the date of the Celtics' last win.) The Bucks sharpshooter told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Monday that he would not return until after the All-Star break.

"You look at Milwaukee. They're in the same situation as us," said Pierce. "They lost their best player and they're out there trying to find a win right before the All-Star break. They look at this as an opportunity as well. We can't take this game for granted."

If the Celtics don't beat the Bucks, they could be staring a record losing streak in the face, since they open with a five-game Western swing after the All-Star break. A loss to Milwaukee and a winless sojourn out West would set the season mark for futility and tie the overall record at 24. Gerald Green's hometown of Houston, the last stop on the trip, would be the site of such an ignominious accomplishment.

"We ain't trying to set no record," said Green. "It don't matter where it be. I don't like losing. I don't care if it was in India."

The Celtics haven't won on the parquet since a 119-114 decision over the Denver Nuggets (pre-Allen Iverson) on Dec. 15. They've lost 13 straight at home. "That's probably the most frustrating thing about it, losing at home and having the type of record that we have at home," said Pierce. "Guys are embarrassed by it. Hopefully, we'll turn this around and start having more consistency, especially at home." . . . Rivers said his team played a little tight down the stretch in Minnesota, perhaps a byproduct of the losing streak. "I thought that we all were trying to sit on the lead and [say] 'Let's get out of here,' instead of, 'Let's continue to play,' " Rivers said. "The only way to relieve that is with a win." Pierce said the younger guys are eager to get the monkey off their back. "These guys aren't happy with losing these games," he said. "You see it in their face every day at practice. You see it in the locker room."

Rivers stopped practice a half-hour early, he said, because he wanted his team to end the session on a high note . . . If thoughts of Greg Oden or Kevin Durant are dancing through Rivers's head, he's keeping them to himself. When asked if he watched college games in which Oden and Durant play, he responded, "The only college player I'm watching is Jeremiah Rivers." His son is a freshman guard at Georgetown.

Christopher L. Gasper can be reached at cgasper@globe.com.