Paul Pierce scored 10 of his 29 points in overtime and made a crucial steal with under 30 seconds left to propel the host Boston Celtics to a wild 105-102 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday.
Pierce knocked down two free throws with 1:09 left to provide a 99-95 lead, then stepped into the passing lane and stole a pass from Carlos Delfino in the right corner.
However, the Celtics couldn't put away the Bucks until Pierce drained six free throws in the final 13 seconds. In the process, Pierce joined John Havlicek and Larry Bird as the only Celtics with 20,000 points.
The Celtics came back from a six-point deficit with 3 1/2 minutes left in regulation to take a 90-84 lead with 1:26 to go fueled by a pair of three-point plays by Kevin Garnett and another by Pierce.
But Milwaukee didn't give in and tied the game on a lefthanded layup off a curl cut by Delfino with 10 seconds left after Ray Allen split two free throws. Rajon Rondo's buzzer jumper went off the rim, forcing overtime.
Allen scored 23 points and Rondo added 17 and 15 assists to set a league record with 82 assists in the first five games - one more than John Stockton and Magic Johnson.
Andrew Bogut had 21 points and 13 rebounds for Milwaukee, which has lost four of five to start the season.
Milwaukee | Boston | |
Andrew Bogut 21 | Scoring | Paul Pierce 28 |
Carlos Delfino 7 | Assists | Rajon Rondo 15 |
Andrew Bogut 13 | Rebounds | Kevin Garnett 8 |
Corey Maggette 7 | Free Throws Made | Paul Pierce 11 |
Drew Gooden 2 | Steals | Rajon Rondo 3 |
Andrew Bogut 1 | Blocks | Jermaine O'Neal 3 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Milwaukee | 102 | 41.9 | 5-13 | 25-31 | 17 | 42 | 1 | 4 | 19 |
Boston | 105 | 46.8 | 4-12 | 27-32 | 24 | 43 | 6 | 8 | 16 |