Even though the Celtics were up only 7 points during a timeout with 2:01 to play during a 98-88 victory over the Hawks last night, the game operations staff at TD Banknorth Garden couldn't fight the urge to announce the showdown that is coming next.
Highlights were shown of the first two intense games this season between the Eastern Conference powers the Celtics (46-12) and the Pistons (43-16). And as the video montage came to a conclusion, the words "Round 3" appeared in regards to the Boston-Detroit grudge match to take place here Wednesday night.
"I anticipate it being nothing short of emotion," said Celtics forward Kevin Garnett, who had 20 points and 16 rebounds against Atlanta. "Both teams are solid teams. People are expecting that to be the Eastern Conference finals matchup. It should be fun.
"They have three All-Stars, we have three All-Stars. They have a [heck] of a cast, we have a heck of a cast. They're coached by a great coach; we're coached by a great coach. Solidified organizations . . . history is there. It should be a fun game, exciting, a lot of emotion."
Boston is 3 1/2 games ahead of the Pistons for the lead in the East. Wednesday's game will be the last for the teams in the regular season; the series is tied, 1-1.
"It's a very important game for us," said Paul Pierce, who had 30 points yesterday. "It's definitely a team we can see in the playoffs. As we are trying to secure home-court advantage the rest of the playoffs and continue to win, this is a team that is right behind us. If we can get a little gap on them as we try to finish out the season, it would be great."
The Celtics have won five straight and eight straight at home. Pierce scored 17 of his game-high total in the third quarter. Kendrick Perkins matched Garnett's double-double with 11 points, a season-high tying 12 rebounds, and added a career-high 6 assists, and Ray Allen had 17 points.
"It's kind of like pick your poison," said Hawks forward Josh Smith, who had a team-high 22 points. "You just have to hope that on a given night that they aren't going to shoot the ball like they're going to shoot it because KG is going to get his numbers every night, he's pretty consistent with it. You just got to hope that Paul Pierce or Ray Allen is off."
The Hawks (24-33) haven't been to the playoffs since 1999. But with Smith, newly acquired point guard Mike Bibby, All-Star guard Joe Johnson, and Rookie of the Year candidate Al Horford (14 points, 11 rebounds), Atlanta has a chance not only to get back in the postseason, but also to possibly play Boston in the first round.
"They will probably end up being a team we see in the first round," Pierce said. "They're a team that can definitely play in the seventh spot or the eighth spot [in the East]."
The Celtics finished the first quarter with a 26-22 lead after shooting 48 percent from the field and scoring 12 points in the paint. Late in the first, coach Doc Rivers and point guard Rajon Rondo had a spirited discussion on the bench over Rondo's shot selection. Eventually, Garnett sat between the two and patted Rondo on his left leg to calm things down. Rondo finished the night with 6 points on 2-of-11 shooting and 8 assists.
After the game, Rivers and Rondo both indicated the incident was water under the bridge.
"He was right in that situation," Rondo said. "At that time, I thought I was right. I just got caught up in the moment. We're both past it. We got the win tonight and try to move forward."
Said Rivers: "It's not a big deal."
The Celtics were behind, 44-41, at halftime after being outscored, 22-15, in the second quarter while shooting 30 percent from the field (6 for 20) in the second. Garnett had 12 points and nine rebounds in the first half while Smith had 13 points and six rebounds.
The Celtics went on a 13-0 run, including three 3-pointers, to take a 54-46 lead with 8:57 left in the third quarter. But the Hawks were only down, 70-67, at the end of the third. Pierce notched his 17 points in the quarter on 7-of-12 shooting.
"I just tried to play within the flow of the game and let the game come to me," Pierce said. "In the second half I wanted to be a little more aggressive than I was."
An emphatic baseline dunk by Garnett on Horford gave Boston an 82-74 lead with 6:17 remaining in the fourth. Just before the Pistons reminder was displayed on the big screen, Allen hit a 13-foot jumper to put Atlanta behind, 90-83, with 2:26 remaining.
"We're not going to overemphasize it," said Allen about Detroit. "From one game to the next, we want to get better."
Marc J. Spears can be reached at mspears@globe.com
