He was no ordinary Joe

Johnson erupts for 20 in fourth

Joe Johnson drives past Ray Allen as he heads to the hoop for one of the many clutch shots he hit down the stretch. The Hawk outscored the Celtics in the fourth quarter, 20-17. (Jim Davis/Globe Staff)

ATLANTA - Joe Johnson was hemmed in by the Celtics' double teams throughout the third quarter last night and there was not a safe spot on the floor for the Atlanta swingman. The only basket he made in the third required terrific effort: three crossover dribbles through traffic, a head fake, and a spin off his pivot foot in the middle of the lane with Boston green surrounding him.

And then, just like that, Johnson got loose from the Celtics' ferocious double teams and the Hawks' $70 million star went to work and Atlanta evened the best-of-seven playoff series with a 97-92 victory in Philips Arena.

It was Johnson off the drive, Johnson with the jumper, Johnson finishing with a flourish at the rim. The 6-foot-7-inch sixth-year pro outscored the Celtics in the fourth period, 20-17, and finished with 35 points.

"I was just trying to be aggressive," Johnson said. "I know starting the fourth we're down 10, somebody's got to step up and do something.

"If I'm supposed to be the guy, the All-Star on this team, then I've got to step up, and that's what I did."

The Celtics' defense on the pick and roll above the foul line in the third quarter also shut out Hawks point guard Mike Bibby, who took just two shots in the period after scoring 18 points in the first half.

Atlanta coach Mike Woodson watched all the third-quarter happenings as the Celtics built a 75-65 lead. Johnson had one basket in the third as the Hawks scored just 14 points.

"They are so aggressive defensively it forces the ball to get 3, 4, 5 feet further out and forces us out of our offense," Josh Childress said. "Coach just let Joe play one-on-one."

Woodson told his team in the huddle between the third and fourth quarters to spread the floor and not allow Boston's Ray Allen to get easy help on defense guarding Johnson.

"When we were running a lot of pick and rolls, they were trapping me and that was kind of tough, so we just said we're going to space the floor," Johnson said. "I told coach don't bring no pick and rolls, let me go one-on-one. My teammates did a great job of spacing the floor."

It was a departure from the Hawks' offense in Game 3 when they made sure four or five players touched it on most every possession. Atlanta had 28 assists on 36 baskets in Game 3, but just 16 on 32 buckets last night.

Johnson made 7 of 10 shots in the fourth quarter, which included hitting both of his 3-point attempts. Atlanta scored 32 points in the quarter and he got his 20, along with an assist that led to Josh Smith's 20-foot jump shot that gave the Hawks the lead for good, 81-79, with 5 minutes 16 seconds to play.

The Hawks borrowed something from their game plan in Game 3 by posting center Al Horford on their first possession of the fourth quarter and getting the ball to him immediately. When the Celtics' James Posey dropped to double-team Horford, the ball was kicked to Johnson, who hit the 3-pointer to make it 75-68.

"Everybody was crammed on him, but by me posting the ball, it freed him up on the 3-point line," Horford said. "It was going to get me going with a basket, or they were going to leave Joe open, and they left Joe open and it was a big three for us."

It was a big trey for Johnson, but bigger as far as vindication. When he was signed to that five-year, $70 million contract in 2006, there was an outcry that he wasn't worth the money. The contract also brought to a head a feud over finances among Hawks owners.

Johnson acknowledges there has been a debate about his worthiness for such a deal. He has rolled out a welcome mat to greet those expectations.

"Definitely," Johnson said when asked if he felt he has had to prove he earns his money. "And when I got here, this is what I imagined."