BOSTON -- Numerous hallmarks of Boston's success over the past two seasons have re-emerged over the past two weeks, but one area remains noticeably absent: third-quarter dominance.

The same scenario played out repeatedly during the 2007-08 championship season. An opponent hung close with the Celtics in the first half, then Boston shifted to another gear in the third quarter and motored away for a lopsided win that typically featured the starters laughing it up to Gino from the bench in the fourth.

Now it's a luxury if the starters are lounging in the fourth quarter. They did so Sunday night against the Spurs, but only because San Antonio's dominance in the third frame helped the visitors turn this one into a different sort of laugher with a 94-73 triumph at TD Garden.

The Celtics trailed by a point coming out of intermission, but San Antonio scored the first 12 points of the second half while motoring away. The Spurs' lead ballooned as high as 17 in the third quarter and 25 in the fourth.

"I thought they came out with more of a sense of urgency in the third quarter," lamented Celtics captain Paul Pierce. "The extra-effort plays. It was a one-point game at the half and we just didn't make the second and third rotations. They were driving, being more of the aggressor, and they had us on our heels pretty much all of the second half.

"Like I said, they made the extra-effort plays tonight that we usually make. The team that you saw, San Antonio, the way they played is usually the way we play and we just got an old-fashioned butt whooping."

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