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BOSTON -- A collection of news and notes following the Celtics' 78-66 victory over the Miami Heat on Tuesday night.

RIVERS THINKS ALLEN WILL BE READY FOR PLAYOFFS

Celtics coach Doc Rivers acknowledged prior to Tuesday's victory that Ray Allen's prolonged ankle woes are a "concern," but he did offer one of his only glances of hope in recent weeks after the game, when he noted that he thinks Allen will be ready for the postseason, which will begin either Saturday or Sunday against the Atlanta Hawks.

"I think Ray will be ready," Rivers said. "I don't know that. I do think he will be ready. But if he's not, someone else has to be."

WILLIAMS MAKES GARDEN DEBUT

Playing in only his second game with the Celtics, Sean Williams made his TD Garden debut on Tuesday night, and it was a noticeable improvement over his brief three-minute stint against the Hawks last Friday. Williams played 20 minutes on Tuesday, scoring 5 points to go along with 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals.

His most distinguishing impact came in the fourth quarter, in which he managed 4 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists, helping to spark Boston as it outscored Miami 28-16 over the final 12 minutes. Williams impressed Rivers with his competitiveness down the stretch.

"It was OK. I mean, he's a shot-blocker, doesn't know a lot of our stuff," Rivers said when asked to assess Williams' performance. "He was pressing early. ... One thing I did like about Sean down the stretch -- he's competitive, and you can see that. He wasn't going to back down from anything. He got some great blocked shots, so that was good to see."

When informed of Rivers' compliment to his competitiveness, Williams touched on the need to take advantage of opportunities when they're presented.

"This team, we have goals. We want to be champions," Williams said. "Everybody has to come out focused, with the mindset that we can't waste any time out there, and we can only get better with every opportunity. A game like this, with the Big Four out, all of us players on the bench -- a lot of the players haven't had a lot of action this year and what not -- it's a chance to prove to Doc that we're ready whenever he's going to call us."

Williams played less than eight minutes in the first half, but settled into a rhythm nicely in the final quarter, and was able to produce in a variety of areas. He admitted afterward that he was more relaxed throughout the second half, and that allowed him to be more effective.

"You go out there, your first time out there, you get tired real fast, your legs get down on you real quick," he said. "Everything kind of shuts down on you when you first get out there, so, yeah, I caught my second wind, I guess, in the second half."

HOME-COURT ADVANTAGE STILL POSSIBLE

The Celtics are set to play the Atlanta Hawks in the opening round of the playoffs this weekend, but where the first two games will be held has not been decided. Both the Celtics and Hawks won on Tuesday, meaning the Celtics still trail Atlanta by a game in the standings. Both teams wrap up the regular season on Thursday (Boston will face Milwaukee while Atlanta will battle Dallas), but if the Celtics win and the Hawks lose, leaving the teams with the same record, Boston will assume home-court advantage by virtue of the head-to-head tiebreaker (the C's won two of three regular-season meetings).

Despite a desire to still rest any players that might need it, there's no denying Thursday's game takes on heightened significance.

"We're going to play our guys Thursday, anyway, especially because they didn't play today," Rivers said, referring to the likes of Kevin Garnett and Mickael Pietrus. "It would be nice to put some more pressure and force Atlanta to have to win. That would be nice."

Added Keyon Dooling, "We expect to win every time we go out on the court. No matter who suits up, we expect to win the game. Hopefully our guys are getting their rest, which is really important, but our seeding is important as well. If we have to get that win, we're coming in trying to tear their head off."

BOSTON -- Rapid reaction following the Boston Celtics' 78-66 victory over the Miami Heat at TD Garden on Tuesday night.

HOW THE GAME WAS WON
Marquis Daniels (13 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists) and Sasha Pavlovic (a game-high 16 points) both reached double-figures for Boston, while Paul Pierce, Brandon Bass and Avery Badley all chipped in 8 points for the Celtics. Bass added eight rebounds, shooting 4-of-8 from the field in 28 minutes. For the Heat, James Jones scored 11 points while Dexter Pittman added 12 points and four rebounds.

TURNING POINT
The Heat pushed their third-quarter lead to 42-32 on a Mike Miller 3-pointer with 9:15 to play, but the Celtics outscored Miami 18-8 for the remainder of the quarter, assuming a brief 2-point cushion before a Norris Cole jumper tied things at 50 heading into the final frame. The Celtics held a consistent 6-point lead over the first seven minutes of the fourth quarter before the game was broken open somewhat (by this game's standards) on a Pavlovic 3-pointer from the left wing with 4:45 to go. Pavlovic struck again a little over two minutes later with another momentum-inducing 3-pointer from the left wing, putting the Celtics ahead by 11, then E'Twaun Moore cemented Boston's win with a 3-pointer from the top of the key less than 30 seconds later.

BOLD PLAY OF THE GAME
With 9:33 remaining in the fourth quarter, Daniels intercepted a Juwan Howard pass at halfcourt and pushed the ball the other way, rising up for a wide-open, emphatic slam, giving Boston its first lead of the fourth quarter at 54-52.

WILLIAMS MAKES HOME DEBUT
Celtics newcomer Sean Williams made his TD Garden debut, finishing with 5 points, 4 rebounds and 2 blocks, playing a season-high 13 minutes. Williams was noticeable throughout Boston's early fourth-quarter surge, blocking a Howard jump shot, putting back a JaJuan Johnson miss on the left side, and grabbing three of his four rebounds over the first six minutes of the frame.

TEAMS MIRED BY UGLY START
The first quarter was nothing to write home about as both teams, perhaps due to their mutual lack of star power, struggled mightily out of the gate. The Celtics managed just 10 first-quarter points on 4-of-17 shooting to go along with seven turnovers, while Miami scored a slightly more respectable 17 points on 8-of-16 shooting, but the Heat turned the ball over a whopping 11 times in the opening 12 minutes.

UNSUNG HERO
Despite sustaining a sizable cut under his right eye late in the second quarter from a Jones elbow, Keyon Dooling proved to be a spark off the bench as he chipped in 7 points on 3-of-5 shooting to go along with three rebounds and two assists, finishing with a plus-5.

WHAT IT MEANS
The Celtics and Hawks both won on Tuesday night, but the Celtics kept themselves alive in the hunt for homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs. If the Celtics win on Thursday in their regular-season finale against the Milwaukee Bucks and the Hawks loose their final game on the same night against the Dallas Mavericks, the Celtics will clinch the homecourt edge by virtue of owning the tiebreaker. The Celtics were able to get valuable minutes for certain players who, depending on how things shake out, could have an impact on their postseason run, including Daniels, Pavlovic and even Moore. Pierce, meanwhile, despite a slow start, was able to reestablish his rhythm after a lengthy break from action in the aftermath of sitting out last Friday's tilt with the Hawks.

BOSTON -- Celtics coach Doc Rivers said Paul Pierce is expected to return to the lineup tonight against the Heat following a one-game absence to rest, but that the team will be without Kevin Garnett (rest/hip flexor), Ray Allen (ankle), Rajon Rondo (lower back), Mickael Pietrus (knee) and Greg Stiemsma (foot).

Rivers said he wanted to play Garnett tonight, but that his center approached him about taking the night off to continue to rest and recover from a longstanding hip flexor issue.

"I wanted to play [Garnett] tonight," Rivers said. "My choice was more tonight and give him a day off Thursday. Kevin never comes in and when he comes in to say 'I think I need two more days,' it speaks volumes."

Rivers said there is no update on Allen's progress as he fights to overcome bone spurs in his troublesome left ankle, but Rivers did express encouragement over Pietrus' state, noting that the swelling in his knee has subsided, and he expects to have him back for Thursday's regular-season finale against the Bucks.

"[Pietrus] didn't practice yesterday, but he did shoot," Rivers said. "Swelling's all gone, which is huge, and he will play Thursday."

According to Rivers, Rondo is still fighting through lower back pain following a scary fall against the Knicks last Tuesday, but he could return for Thursday's game.

"[Rondo's] just not ready yet," Rivers said. "He didn't do much at shootaround today, still very stiff. But he's feeling a lot better. Today was the first day he was out on the floor shooting, so he'll probably play on Thursday."

For Tuesday's game, expect to see a starting lineup of Avery Bradley, Sasha Pavlovic, Pierce, Brandon Bass and Ryan Hollins.

MIAMI -- Boston's resurgence this season has not-so-surprisingly coincided with Kevin Garnett's move to the center position. While Celtics coach Doc Rivers is quick to point out that Boston's turnaround is not based on a single alteration, it's hard not to notice just how inspired Garnett's play has been lately.

And while much of the focus has been on his hallmark defensive exploits, Garnett's offense has truly hopped into the time machine.

Garnett connected on 11 of 14 shots for 24 points during Tuesday's 115-107 triumph over the Miami Heat at American Airlines Arena. What's more, eight of those field goals came from beyond 10 feet. While Garnett entered the game shooting 47.6 percent on shots from 10-20 feet this season, he made 8 of 9 (88.9 percent) against Miami, including all four he took in catch-and-shoot situations, according to ESPN Stats and Info.

"He's on a wonderful stretch," Celtics captain Paul Pierce beamed. "The last 20 games, he's been playing just unbelievable."

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MIAMI --Rapid reaction after the Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat 115-107 Tuesday evening at AmericanAirlines Arena:

HOW THE GAME WAS WON
Paul Pierce scored a team-high 27 points to go along with seven rebounds and two assists, while Kevin Garnett chipped in 24 points (on a super-efficient 11-of-14 shooting) with nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks as Boston shot 60.6 percent (43 of 71) and outlasted the Heat in a clash of Eastern Conference rivals. Rajon Rondo added 18 points and 15 assists, while Brandon Bass finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds. LeBron James scored a game-high 36 points for Miami.

TURNING POINT (PART I)
The Celtics absolutely dominated the final three minutes of the first quarter (an 11-0 run), then scored on each of their first five possessions of the second quarter while building a 16-point cushion. The game had been tied at 22, but Boston generated six free throws, Greg Stiemsma made a jumper, and Pierce added a trifecta before the end of the first frame. A pair of 3-pointers from Sasha Pavlovic highlighted the offensive flurry for Boston to start the second quarter and the lead ballooned as high as 18. But the Heat weren't about to roll over.

NOT HALF BAD, BEYOND THE TURNOVERS
The Celtics were up 17 with five minutes to go in the first half, but all it took was a turnover and a resulting Dwyane Wade dunk in transition to give the Heat renewed life. A Mario Chalmers jumper and another Wade dunk off a strong drive to the rim highlighted a 9-0 burst in little more than a minute and the lead dwindled to eight (where it remained at halftime). For a Boston team that shot 60.5 percent in the first half (23 of 38), allowing the Heat back into it with turnovers (seven giveaways for 12 points in the first half) tempered an otherwise fantastic offensive half. The 65 points tied Boston's 2012 first-half high and was the most given up by Miami before intermission this season.

IT'S ALL ABOUT 18 (FOR RONDO)
Rondo pushed his double-digit assist streak to 18 games during Tuesday's triumph. His finest stretch might have come late in the third quarter with the Heat desperately trying to get over the hump. Rondo assisted on four straight Boston buckets, highlighted by an alley-oop lob to Stiemsma when he rolled free to the hoop. Rondo also looked for his own offense in the frame (connecting on 3 of 5 shots for nine points), including an elbow jumper with 1:50 to go that pushed the lead back to double digits. But, again, the Heat wouldn't go quietly.

TURNING POINT (PART II)
The Heat quickly made it a one-point game in the fourth quarter, forcing Boston to keep coming up with big shots. Bass hit a little turnaround in a one-point game. With the lead at two, Ray Allen found some space and canned a 3-pointer from the left wing for a 94-89 advantage with 9:01 to go. But it was Garnett that ensured there would be no comeback ...

BOLD PLAYS OF THE GAME
... Garnett made four consecutive midrange jumpers over a 1:41 span, turning a 5-point lead into an 11-point cushion. Pierce added a fadeaway before Rondo up-faked Wade into a foul (Wade earned a technical for complaining) and before you could blink Boston's lead was at 12 with 5:18 to play. The Heat actually got it back down to five with two minutes to go, but -- guess who? Yes, Garnett again -- answered with a turnaround jumper to essentially seal it.

SOLID NIGHT FOR STEAMBOAT
Oh sure, he had the usual bouts with referee whistles, but Stiemsma chipped in eight points, seven rebounds, two blocks and a steal over 19:34. He made four of his five shots and finished plus-10. ... The Celtics continue to run with only a three-man bench (Stiemsma, Allen, and Sasha Pavlovic) during big games.

WHAT IT MEANS
Well, that was entertaining. Defense took a bit of a back seat as Boston and Miami engaged in an old-fashioned shootout. The Celtics were in complete control while blistering the floor early on, but simply couldn't hold onto the momentum (usually turnovers giving Miami some fire with loud buckets in transition). Boston would have preferred the win to come easier, especially with a back-to-back looming with potential playoff foe Atlanta on Wednesday at TD Garden, but the Celtics stuck with the 2011-12 season script and had to grind out the win in a game with a playoff vibe. These teams battle one more time in Boston later this month and a playoff series would be highly entertaining if it materializes.

MIAMI -- A quiet pregame scene at AmericanAirlines Arena before the Celtics and Heat battle. A few quick nuggets:

* Celtics coach Doc Rivers said his team is at full strength (sans recovering Mickael Pietrus), but that Marquis Daniels is battling a cold. Down the hall, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, "Everybody is ready to go; Dwyane [Wade] is playing."

* Rivers admitted that it's a game-to-game situation with Keyon Dooling with shorter rotations and Ray Allen back on the floor. Even still, he praised Dooling's professionalism despite his lack of minutes lately.

* Spoelstra offered his take on the challenges the Celtics present with Kevin Garnett at center and Avery Bradley shuffling into the starting rotation in place of Allen: "It has changed the dynamics of their offense. Their defense has been as consistent as any defense has been in the league for the last four years. Right now they have the top-rated defense and they have veteran guys who understand how much that impacts the game. Offensively, with Garnett at the 5, it inverts their offense so that now both their bigs are shooters and it allows more room for [Rajon] Rondo and [Avery] Bradley to cut, [Paul] Pierce to post, and the paint is a little more open. Obviously, you have a Hall of Famer coming off the bench that could go for 25 or 30 [points] or any given night. They are healthy right now, they are in shape, and this should be a good game tonight."

* Rivers expanded on the notion of inverting the offense: "It clearly makes us more difficult to gang up on and guard us when you have two shooting bigs. Most teams have one and the other guys is rebounding and stuff. To have two guys that can stretch the floor, it allows you to do more things offensively. Then I think the defensive part of our team, we’ve been good all year, but since the break, we’ve been really good and that’s who we are, at the end of the day."

* Tonight starts a stretch of five games in six days for Boston. The Celtics will see the Heat again on April 24 in Boston, but will play seven games in a 10-day span before that happens. The one good thing for Boston, there's a whopping three days of rest (April 21-23) before the Miami game. The regular-season ends two nights later with a visit from the Milwaukee Bucks.

A look at some noteworthy numbers before the Celtics visit the Heat, as researched by our friends at Elias Sports Bureau:

* The Celtics have posted a 17-7 (.708) record since the All-Star break. Only two teams in the league have a better record than Boston since the break: San Antonio (16-5) and Chicago (16-6).

* LeBron James has scored at least 20 points in each of the last 26 regular-season games he has played against the Celtics. Prior to James, the last player to score 20-or-more points in at least 26 consecutive games against the Celtics was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who did it in 39 straight games against Boston from Oct. 1969 to Jan. 1979.

* Rajon Rondo has registered at least 10 assists in each of his last 17 games. Only three other players in NBA history have had a streak of 17+ consecutive games with double-digits in assists during their career: John Stockton (nine times), Magic Johnson (four times) and Kevin Porter... Rondo has recorded 225 total assists during his streak. That is 35 more than any other player in the league has been credited with over that span (next highest: 190 by Chris Paul).

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The grind to the regular-season finish line starts Tuesday night for the Boston Celtics (32-24, 12-15 away) when they visit the Miami Heat (40-15, 24-3 home) at AmericanAirlines Arena (7 p.m., ESPN). To preview the matchup, we play a game of 2-on-2 with colleague Greg Payne.

For the Miami perspective, check out the Heat Index's 3-on-3 game preview.

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1. What will you be focused on when the Celtics visit the Heat?

Payne: I'm interested in the Celtics' sense of urgency. Sunday's win over Philadelphia practically cemented their playoff position, so I'm worried about a letdown with such a grueling part of the schedule on the horizon. You also have to factor in the Heat's potential performance tonight, as they can't be too happy about the way the last game against Boston went down. You have to think the Heat will come out guns blazing tonight and try to put the C's on their heels from the opening tip. How will Boston respond to that? As well as Boston has played of late, it's important for the Celtics to continue building momentum as they hurtle towards the playoffs, so I'm really looking for them to display that same sense of urgency we've seen in recent weeks.

Forsberg: Here's a handful of things I'll be keying on: 1) Avery Bradley vs. Dwyane Wade, Part II. Wade is expected to play and has plenty of motivation after Bradley's solid defensive effort (including a highlight-reel block in last week's meeting); 2) Rajon Rondo will not only be in the spotlight (a national TV game), but also the crosshairs for Miami. Coming off that dominant triple-double effort, expect the game plan to center around smothering the quarterback; 3) Can the Celtics' second unit continue to thrive to start the second quarter? Boston has gotten a real boost from the reserve unit the last couple games; 4) Which James Jones shows up? He was a non-factor in Boston, but is usually a 3-point pest off the bench (he drained six in a win over Detroit on Sunday); 5) As always with the Heat, the biggest thing is turnovers. Boston absolutely cannot give the ball away or it's going to be a long night.

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BOSTON -- It's easy to forget now, given how much time has passed, that Paul Pierce didn't play when the Celtics and Heat met for the first time this season. Back on Dec. 27, in just the second game of the season, the C's stumbled in South Beach while Pierce nursed a heel injury. And, had the situation been identical on Sunday, the result would have also probably been the same.

Instead, Pierce played, and the Celtics emerged with a convincing 91-72 decision over Miami at TD Garden.

Of course Pierce isn't the sole reason why the Celtics were able to extend their winning streak to five games and come away with arguably their most substantial victory of the season. Rajon Rondo produced another triple-double in front of a national television audience (16 points, 11 rebounds, 14 assists), Avery Bradley chipped in 13 points and played terrific defense on Dwyane Wade, and Kevin Garnett and Brandon Bass combined for 26 points and 18 rebounds. But it was Pierce who continued to be the model of offensive consistency, producing 23 points on 8-of-17 shooting, to go along with seven rebounds, while being matched up against two of the league's premiere perimeter defenders in LeBron James and Shane Battier.

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BOSTON -- A look at ESPN Boston headlines after the Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat on Sunday afternoon at TD Garden, including Rajon Rondo's latest masterpiece before a national audience. For the Miami perspective, check out our friends at the Heat Index and the Daily Dime.

BOSTON -- A handful of news and notes after the Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat 91-72 Sunday at TD Garden:

A turnaround on turnovers

During their December visit to Miami, the Celtics turned the ball over 24 times leading to 33 points for the Heat. Celtics coach Doc Rivers implored his team to not give up easy points, going so far as to suggest chucking the ball six rows deep instead of trying to make a splashy save.

Boston responded by committing 16 turnovers for a mere 11 points (nine of the turnovers came in the second half, but led to zero points). The Celtics generated more scoring (15 points) off Miami's 12 total turnovers.

"You’re not going to beat Miami if you turn the ball over," Rivers said. "Literally, when we talked about it this morning, I said, ‘If you’ve got a choice between saving the ball and throwing it in the stands, throw it in the stands.’ Because a live turnover against them -- statistically, I think they’re at a historic pace after turnovers -- and so I thought we had the one stretch, I think we had four [early in the second quarter], even if it wasn’t turnovers, bad shots, a couple turnovers in a row, and they made a run. Other than that, I thought we were terrific with the ball."

Maybe most impressive in Rajon Rondo's triple-double effort was the little number in the turnover column; he gave the ball up just twice while handing out 14 assists. And that's coming off Friday's win, when Rondo had 17 assists to only two turnovers. Only once in his last seven games has Rondo had more than three turnovers in a contest, producing 100 assists versus 22 turnovers during that span.

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BOSTON -- Rapid reaction after the Boston Celtics defeated the Miami Heat 91-72 Sunday afternoon at TD Garden:

HOW THE GAME WAS WON
Another national game, another triple-double for Rajon Rondo, who registered 16 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds over 36 minutes. Rondo has now messed around 18 times during his career (14 of which have come on national TV). Paul Pierce added a game-high 23 points, while Brandon Bass produced a double-double (16 points, 10 rebounds). LeBron James matched Pierce with 23 points, but Miami's offense really struggled as evidenced by Chris Bosh settling for 4 points on 2-of-11 shooting.

TURNING POINT
Two minutes into the second half, this was still a one-possession game, but the Celtics absolutely tore the hinges off the doors over the next 10 minutes. Boston closed out the third quarter on a 29-8 run fueled by eight assists by Rondo. The Celtics connected on 14 of 23 shots in the frame (60.9 percent) with balanced contributions, including Avery Bradley (8 points) and Pierce (7). Bass aided the run with six rebounds, while Boston committed just two turnovers in the quarter.

BOLD PLAY OF THE GAME
Bradley sent Dwyane Wade sprawling with a monster block late in the first half (video HERE). Wade tried to cut baseline -- something Bradley's done well lately -- but the second-year guard pursued and swatted the layup attempt, sending Wade sliding across the floor in the aftermath. The only trouble for Boston: Shane Battier grabbed the loose ball and canned a 3-pointer to make it 40-38 with 3:25 to go in the first half.

NATIONAL GAME = ENGAGED RONDO
Not that Rondo hasn't been otherworldly lately, but a national TV game against the rival Heat certainly brought out the best in him early on. Over the first eight minutes, Rondo piled up 10 points (six in a row off a trio of layups), 3 rebounds and 3 assists while staking Boston to a 21-10 advantage. Rondo kept his foot on the accelerator, getting assist-happy in the third quarter, and has now produced double-digit assists in his last 13 games.

RAY WHO? BRADLEY CONTINUES TO THRIVE
Ray Allen missed his sixth consecutive game with lingering soreness in his right ankle, but the Celtics continue to thrive in large part due to the development of Bradley. Beyond his highlight block on Wade and keying the third-quarter offense, Bradley did a tremendous job defensively on Wade, who settled for 15 points (on 6-of-17 shooting). Bradley finished with 13 points (on 5-of-10 shooting) over 36 minutes. Boston is 10-1 without Allen this season.

WHAT IT MEANS
The Celtics didn't just win their fifth straight, they produced perhaps their most inspiring win of the season, absolutely throttling one of the Eastern Conference's top teams. Boston eliminated the turnovers that plagued them in the first meeting (16 turnovers for only 11 points), cranked up the defensive intensity (the Heat finished 31 of 89 shooting for 34.8 percent), and pretty much led from start to finish (fans had to wait for the final buzzer to dance with Gino). The Celtics' grueling April slate continues with a visit from San Antonio on Wednesday, but they get back-to-back days off and can maybe even sneak in a rare practice.

Three months and much of the NBA season have passed since the Boston Celtics (29-22, 18-8 home) and Miami Heat (37-13, 16-11 road) last clashed in December, but the two rivals will see each other three times in the next 24 days -- with the strong possibility of a playoff date to follow. The play-dates start Sunday with a national television showdown at TD Garden (3:30 p.m., ABC). To preview the big game, we go 3-on-3 with ESPN Boston's Greg Payne and CelticsHub's Ryan DeGama.

For the Miami perspective, check out a 3-on-3 by our friends at the Heat Index.

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1. What has been the biggest change for the Celtics since the first meeting with the Heat in December?

Payne: The Celtics are in shape and they're playing together. I don't think we should underestimate the perplexities that this shortened season brought forth, as there's no question this club has grown in virtually every area since the second game of the season. It's become pretty obvious of late that Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce have steadily worked themselves back into shape as the season has gone on, and they're arguably the two biggest reasons why Boston's seen this mini resurgence of late and have reclaimed the outright lead in the Atlantic Division. On top of that, the Celtics are finally starting to play with the offensive balance that has been crucial for them over the past few seasons (Rajon Rondo's play has a lot to do with that), and when Ray Allen returns, I think he'll blend right back in pretty seamlessly.

DeGama: The inclination is to note the mass of injuries, but that hardly counts as news in this Celtics era, so I’ll say it’s the surge from Garnett, who has routinely been the best player on the floor since the All-Star break. Boston's offense is more dangerous with Garnett at the 5-spot and the burden (however unwanted) of being the team's key rebounder and scorer has served to focus KG. That leads to a significant downstream benefit: few other players in the league engage their teammates more than a brightly burning Garnett. Right now, he's practically radiating.

Forsberg: The biggest change is probably having a healthy Pierce back on the floor. But look at Boston's rotation from that first meeting and there's changes everywhere. From Garnett shuffling to the center spot and Brandon Bass joining the first unit to Avery Bradley and Greg Stiemsma emerging as key role players -- the Celtics won't look much like the team the Heat saw the first time around (particularly if Ray Allen is still unable to go due to right ankle soreness that's forced him to miss five games). But it all comes back to Pierce. He's so vital to Boston's success against the Heat and having him back on the floor makes this a much different matchup than back in December.

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MIAMI -- Celtics coach Doc Rivers admitted he wasn't quite sure how his defense was faring at halftime because the Heat were generating so many transition buckets off his team's turnovers that Boston never really had much of a chance to set up its defense.

But with the Heat shooting nearly 70 percent from the floor and boasting a 20-point cushion late in the third quarter Tuesday, something had to change. So less than seven full quarters into the 2011-12 season, Rivers dipped into his bag of tricks and decided to switch to a rarely seen zone defense.

Mind you, the Celtics have thrived off their help defense system build off a man-to-man backbone during the Big Three era. In fact, the Celtics played zone defense on a mere 1.8 percent of all plays during the 2010-11 season, according to ESPN Stats and Info. But Boston was in desperate need of something to change the momentum of Tuesday's game against the Heat, so zone it was.

The result? The Heat shot just 28.6 percent and averaged a measly 0.54 points per play against the zone (as opposed to 61.9 percent and 1.17 points per play against man coverage).

"I love our team, I will say that. I love the way they fight," Rivers said. "We’ve been working on that zone since the beginning of training camp, [but] never shown it [in games]. I told them at some point it was going to get us back into a game because no one thinks we’ll ever play zone. It did, it was terrific tonight. It kind of pushed [the Heat] back on their heels, so that part of it worked. But we had such a big hole to fight back, it was difficult."

The Celtics whittled Miami's lead to a single possession twice in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter. But even against the zone, the Heat produced a few big shots, most notably rookie Norris Cole stepping up with two big jumpers down the stretch.

"The only mistake we made out of zone -- and, listen, they were 6 for [21 against it], we’ll take that -- the six [shots] that they made were dribble-drive [penetration]. Not only just Cole, but Dwyane [Wade]. Just because you’re in a zone, someone still has to guard the ball. And that’s what we kept telling them. That’s where we failed. That’s the only part. Kevin Eastman put [the zone] in on the first day [of camp] and we’ve been working on it. But you can see that’s the one area, because we have the guys square, even Cole, but we just let him beat us off the dribble. That’s an area that’s very fixable. And that’s the area where they beat us."

The Heat finished the game shooting 56 percent from the floor, the third-highest regular-season field goal percentage by an opponent in the Big Three era. Hop HERE to see the previous top games, headlined by the Raptors, who shot 58 percent in a 114-112 triumph over Boston on Jan. 23, 2008.

MIAMI -- Rapid reaction after the Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics, 115-107, on Tuesday night at American Airlines Arena:

HOW THE GAME WAS WON
The Celtics improbably rallied from a 20-point, third-quarter hole to twice make it a one-possession game with less than two minutes to play, but Heat rookie guard Norris Cole made a pair of clutch jumpers to prevent Boston from rallying any closer. LeBron James scored a team-high 26 points with six rebounds and five assists, while Dwyane Wade kicked in 24 points with eight assists. Ray Allen scored a game-high 28 points on 8-of-12 shooting for Boston, while Rajon Rondo added 22 points, 12 assists and 8 rebounds in another monster effort.

TURNING POINT
The Heat shot a blistering 65.7 percent in the first half (23-of-35, including 5-of-6 beyond the 3-point arc) while scoring 69 points and building a 15-point cushion at the intermission. That lead ballooned early in the third quarter as the Heat flirted with 70 percent from the field. The Celtics shifted to a zone defense in the third quarter that aided their rally, but the Heat ultimately shot 56 percent (42-of-75) -- the third highest mark in their big three era.

OFFICIALLY A PROBLEM
For the second time in as many games, referees made themselves a storyline. Olandis Poole drew Doc Rivers' ire early and often for what Boston's coach thought was uneven whistles, particularly in the first half. The Heat generated 24 first-half free throws behind 15 foul calls against the Celtics (Boston shot 15 free throws on nine personal fouls on Miami). Rondo got T'd up by Poole in the first half and Rivers finally boiled over in the third quarter, even as Boston trimmed its deficit to single digits.

TURNOVERS A BIGGER PROBLEM
The Celtics committed 15 first-half turnovers leading to 23 points (the Heat turned the ball over 11 times, but for only 11 points). Boston couldn't control the officiating, but it could have been less sloppy with the ball (especially after coaches stressed valuing the ball, particularly against this team). For the game, Boston gave the ball away 24 times for 33 points.

UNSUNG HERO
Cole, selected one spot after JaJuan Johnson at No. 28 in June's draft, chipped in 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting with four assists and four rebounds.

WHAT IT MEANS
Boston has lost six of its past seven games against Miami (including a five-game series loss in the Eastern Conference semifinals last season). After winning three of four regular-season matchups last season, the Celtics know regular-season success isn't an indicator of postseason potential, but you get the feeling that Miami isn't exactly frightened by the idea of jousting with Boston given their recent success. That said, Boston's late rally might have reminded them they can never count out the Celtics.

WHAT'S NEXT?
The Celtics tackle the first of 19 back-to-backs (not including a back-to-back-to-back in April) this season Wednesday night with a visit to New Orleans that concludes a season-opening, three-game road trip. Boston, which will again be without captain Paul Pierce versus the Hornets, meets Detroit on Friday night in Boston in the home opener.