C's win in OT

MILWAUKEE -- And on the 13th day, the Celtics rested.

The Celtics blew a 15-point lead before defeating the Milwaukee Bucks 102-97 in overtime last night at the Bradley Center. It was their eighth game in 12 days. Celtics forward Paul Pierce scored a game-high 28 points, guard Ray Allen scored 27 and they combined to nail six free throws in the final 24.9 seconds left in OT to seal the win.

Boston (9-2) went 7-1 during that stretch and will be without a game for two straight days for the first time since Nov. 2-3. The Celtics have won four straight games on the road and are 5-0 against Milwaukee (5-6) dating back to last season.

Boston outscored Milwaukee 29-18 in the second quarter to take a 50-38 halftime lead. A 3-pointer by Brian Scalabrine, his first of the season, gave Boston a 15-point lead, 69-54, lead with 1:06 left in the third. The Celtics finished the third with a 71-59 lead after getting 12 points from Allen, who nailed 5-of-8 field goal attempts in the frame and two free throws.

The Bucks got their deficit under 10 points, 73-65, after two made free throws by Andrew Bogut with 9:59 left in the fourth quarter. The Bucks used a 16-9 run closed within 1-points, 82-81, with 5:11 remaining.

The Celtics seemed perturbed with the physical play of Bogut. With Boston up 86-81 with 3:58 left in the game, Garnett was hit in the mouth by Bogut after earning a shooting foul on the Buck. After huddling for a while, Garnett and Bogut were given double technicals. Since it was Bogut’s second technical, he was ejected from the game with a team-high 20 points and 9 rebounds.

In Bogut’s place, a cold Dan Gadzuric made two free throws. Garnett followed with an 18-foot jumper to give Boston an 88-83 lead with 3:29 left. But a Luke Ridnour 3-pointer followed by a three-point play by rookie forward Luc Mbah a Moute gave Milwaukee a 89-88 lead with 2:58. Celtics center Kendrick Perkins (2 points, 4 rebounds) fouled out on the latter play.

Pierce followed with a jumper and a 3-pointer to give Boston the lead back 93-89 with 2:10 remaining. With 30.5 seconds left and the Celtics up only 93-91, Jefferson was called for an offensive foul while trying to force his way through Pierce to the goal. After a missed Pierce 12-foot jumper with 9.9 seconds left, the ball went out of bounds in Milwaukee’s favor. After a timeout, a lay-in by the Bucks’ Luke Ridnour tied the game at 93 with 1.4 seconds remaining. Celtics reserve guard Eddie House missed a wild 3-pointer at the regulation buzzer to send the game into OT.

Both teams went scoreless in OT until Mbah a Moute nailed two free throws to give Milwaukee a 95-93 lead with 2:32 left in overtime. Twenty one seconds later, Pierce gave Boston back the lead, 96-93, with a 3-pointer. Garnett, however, fouled out with 15 points and 5 rebounds at the 1:48 mark.

Gadzuric gave the Bucks a 97-96 lead on a baseline dunk with 1:07. During that play, Pierce and teammate Rajon Rondo slammed into each other hard and stayed on the floor for a while before getting up. Allen made two free throws with 24.9 seconds left to give Boston the lead back 98-97. Jefferson missed a 14-foot jumper with 11.9 seconds left that was rebounded by Allen. Allen, a former Bucks star, nailed two free throws to give Boston a 100-97 lead.

Instead of going for a trey, Gadzuric missed a short jumper that was rebounded by Pierce. Pierce sealed the win with 3.6 seconds left with two made free throws.