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Celtics captain Paul Pierce has scored 40 points or more in his career 23 times (including three times in the playoffs). But Tuesday's 43-point effort in a loss to the Knicks was remarkable, not only for being the first regular-season 40-plus effort of the Big Three era, but because of how few shots Pierce needed to accomplish the feat.

Pierce connected on 11 of 19 shots (4 of 6 beyond the arc) on the night and was aided by 17-of-18 shooting at the charity stripe. The 19 field goal attempts matched a career low in a 40-point game (Pierce was 14 of 19 for 40 points vs. Detroit in February 2001 and 13 of 19 for 42 points vs. the Lakers a month later).

You'd have to go all the way back to Feb. 15, 2006 for the last time a Celtics player had a 40-point scorer in the regular season. Celtics radio play-by-play man Sean Grande noted that the Celtics had gone 501 regular-season games without a 40-point scorer.

After the game, Pierce seemed more concerned about Boston's lack of defense than his offensive exploits, telling reporters, "We didn't defend the 3 at all tonight. We dug ourselves a huge hole that we couldn't climb out of."

The Celtics missed an opportunity to lock up the Atlantic Division title Tuesday night in New York, though they shouldn't lose too much sleep over it. The Knicks' bench tandem of Steve Novak and J.R. Smith was simply ridiculous from beyond the arc (a combined 15 of 20) and Boston can't do much more than tip its cap when an opponent shoots 57 percent overall and makes 19 triples. Heck, even Carmelo Anthony's triple-double and Paul Pierce's first regular-season 40-point effort of the Big Three era were overshadowed by New York's bench exploits.

At the end of the day, securing the division crown -- and the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs -- should take care of itself for Boston over the final eight days of the regular season. The Celtics do have some interesting decisions to make moving forward, most notably how much rest they can afford their players over the final four games. A few thoughts moving forward:

* The Celtics still own a 3½-game lead over the Knicks. With Philadelphia out of contention for the division title after Tuesday's loss to Indiana, Boston can lock up the crown as soon as Wednesday with a win over Orlando and a New York loss to the Nets. While the Celtics and Knicks split the head-to-head matchup this season, Boston owns a four-game cushion in conference record, the next tiebreaker. Which is to say that it would be extremely difficult for Boston to fumble away the division title.

* That said, Boston's schedule is still daunting over the final four games. There's the tail end of a back-to-back Wednesday night against the well-rested (but dinged-up) Magic at TD Garden, followed by games with playoff-bound Atlanta and Miami. Even Milwaukee's playoff dreams are still alive at the moment, which could make the regular-season finale a must-win situation for the Bucks.

* Here's the bottom line: If health trumps both seeding and home-court advantage, as Celtics coach Doc Rivers has contended recently, it might be time to start resting bodies. Both Rajon Rondo (back) and Pierce (thigh) emerged from New York a little more dinged up than they arrived. Rondo landed hard on his back chasing a rebound in the third quarter, while Pierce battled a thigh issue and appeared to aggravate a left toe injury in the first half. With Mickael Pietrus missing the game due to swelling in his right knee, the Celtics have to tread carefully with their rotation guys, and you know they'd like to get some rest for Kevin Garnett before the postseason. Sure, Ray Allen might benefit from court time after missing 11 of the last 16 games, but the C's should be careful with him with the chance of the injury becoming an issue again with heightened activity.

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Rapid reaction after the New York Knicks defeated the Boston Celtics 118-110 Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden:

HOW THE GAME WAS WON
Carmelo Anthony registered a triple-double with 35 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists, but the night belonged to the Knicks bench as J.R. Smith and Steve Novak went off for 25 points apiece, absolutely raining down 3-pointers as the duo combined to go 15 of 20 beyond the arc. New York connected on 19 of 32 triples overall, generating nearly half of its total offense from downtown. It all overshadowed Paul Pierce's brilliant 43-point effort that paced Boston. The difference in the game, though, the Knicks' bench outscored Boston, 55-2.

TURNING POINT
The Knicks erupted for 72 first-half points while shooting a ridiculous 63.4 percent from the floor. That included connecting on 14 of 21 trifectas, highlighted by an unconscious Smith, who made 7 of 9 triples (while Novak drilled 4 of 6 from downtown) before the intermission. The Knicks bench outscored the Celtics' reserves 39-0 in the first half. If Boston felt bad for itself while playing without Ray Allen (ankle) and Mickael Pietrus (knee), the Knicks certainly didn't and unloaded from beyond the arc, building a 19-point halftime cushion.

CAPTAIN TRIES TO STEADY THE SHIP
Pierce produced Boston's first 40+ point regular-season game of the Big Three era (the last one for the Celtics was Pierce going off for 50 vs. Cleveland on Feb. 15, 2006), connecting on 11 of 19 shots and 17 of 18 free throws. Pierce actually missed four shots in the opening frame and had only 12 first-half points. He put the Celtics on his back in the third quarter, however, pouring in 17 points in the frame to help spark a rally that had Boston within two possessions late int he fourth quarter. Alas, Novak hit some clutch 3-pointers to seal the win for New York.

BRADLEY, CORNER POCKET
Allen might not have been able to suit up due to lingering soreness in his right ankle, but Bradley continues to mask his absence and thrive now that he's cemented in the starting role. Bradley made 5 of 6 trifectas and has been absolutely lethal from the right corner. He finished with 17 points and 3 rebounds over 38:19.

BOLD PLAY OF THE GAME
All the focus lately has been on Rajon Rondo's assist streak -- with 13 helpers on Tuesday night, he's now reached double digits in 23 straight games -- but he landed in this spot for calling his own number early in the first quarter. Caught with a mismatch with Tyson Chandler defending, Rondo drove hard into the paint from the right side. Instead of finishing on the left side of the glass with Chandler chasing and looking for the block, Rondo somehow reached back to the right side with his long arms and spun the ball in off the glass. Rondo finished with 13 points on 5 of 8 shooting.

WHAT IT MEANS
The Celtics missed out on an opportunity to clinch the Atlantic Division title. With the 76ers losing to the Pacers, a win by Boston would have locked up that crown and the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference. Alas, their magic number remains at 1 with another chance to cross that off their checklist when the Orlando Magic visit TD Garden on Wednesday. As for Tuesday's game, the Celtics have to simply tip their hats. Novak and Smith were absolutely ridiculous, making big shots throughout the night. Boston's 3-point defense -- previously the best in the league -- got absolutely torn apart and the Knicks made them pay any time the Celtics got caught scrambling (particularly after offensive rebounds). Boston probably doesn't have to worry about New York making a late-season charge at the division title, but that dream lives on for at least one more day for the hot-shooting Knicks. Boston's bigger concern should be health and making sure the likes of Rondo (who landed hard on his back during the game) and Pierce (who aggravated a toe injury, but clearly wasn't hindered by it) are OK moving forward towards the postseason.

The Celtics' bench will be thin Tuesday night against the Knicks as both Ray Allen (ankle) and Mickael Pietrus (knee) will miss the game.

Allen appeared set to return after joining the team in New York and going through a morning shootaround, but his sore right ankle flared after the session, according to coach Doc Rivers. Pietrus, who had offseason right knee surgery, experienced some swelling after the Celtics endured a back-to-back-to-back this past weekend, which may have contributed to his being sent home.

"I got here and the Grim Reaper -- that’s what we call [team trainer] Eddie [Lacerte] when he comes in -- and he gave me the news [on Allen]. You just roll with it; we’ll see tomorrow," Rivers told reporters in New York.

As for Pietrus, Rivers added, "[It was] probably the three days in a row. You kind of forget that he's been out so long and we threw him right back in the fire. I probably erred there, three days in a row for him; His knee swelled up, so we sent him back home, right away."

Allen has now missed 11 of the team's last 16 games. Pietrus missed 10 games while recovering from a concussion before returning for the last four games.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers told reporters at the team's morning shootaround at Madison Square Garden that guard Ray Allen made the trip to New York and is expected to suit up Tuesday night against the Knicks.

Allen has missed 10 of the team's last 15 games due to right ankle soreness. He did not travel for the back-to-back-to-back to open this four-game road trip, but will give it a go after a full week of rest (he last played in Miami on April 10).

The Celtics are 13-2 without Allen this season and 3-1 since he's moved to a bench role allowing second-year guard Avery Bradley to run with the first unit.

The last time Celtics and Knicks got together in New York, the hosts emerged with a chest-thumping Christmas Day win that suggested the Atlantic Division would be a dogfight this year. Little more than three months later, Boston (36-25, 15-16 away) returns to New York (31-29, 20-11 home) hoping to essentially wrap up the division crown and the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. To preview the late-season showdown, we play a game of 3-on-3 with ESPN Boston's Greg Payne and ESPN New York's Jared Zwerling.

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

Payne: I'll be watching to see how the Celtics defend Carmelo Anthony. Over his last five games, Anthony has averaged nearly 33 points per game, and is coming off of a 42-point effort against the Heat in a loss this past Sunday. Paul Pierce will obviously start out on Anthony, and then it'll most likely be Mickael Pietrus from there, and possibly even Sasha Pavlovic for a handful of possessions. Slowing Anthony down, though, will be crucial to Boston's chances of winning on Tuesday night. The Celtics rarely resort to double-teaming opposing players, but if Anthony catches fire early, you never know. Of course, the Celtics could employ the opposite strategy: Let Anthony get his and focus on slowing down everyone else around him. We'll have to wait and see what Boston opts for.

Zwerling: Defensively for the Knicks, the key area is limiting Rajon Rondo, the engine of the Celtics. When he plays well, so do his teammates. The speedy Rondo is especially deadly when the Celtics grab long rebounds. He's already out by the halfcourt line to receive the outlet pass, and then he only needs about five dribbles to get to the basket. So the Knicks can't get beat on the boards and they'll have to try and make sure they're always a step ahead of Rondo when he leaks out to the wings. Because if he becomes a one-man fastbreak during a fourth-quarter stretch, the Celtics can build a 10-0 run very, very quickly. A quick momentum swing like that in the crucial minutes of a likely grind-out matchup could mean the difference in the game. Offensively for the Knicks, they simply need a second playmaker not named Carmelo Anthony. Melo can always entertain the Garden crowd with 42 points, but he needs help, especially down the stretch.

Forsberg: As will be the case over the final five games, health will be in the spotlight for Boston. Is Pierce feeling 100 percent after stubbing his toe late in Saturday's win over New Jersey (then taking Sunday's finale of a back-to-back-to-back in Charlotte off)? Pierce has a tough assignment with Anthony and the team should tread carefully with his minutes if he displays any signs of pain (though after missing the Christmas Day battle at MSG, it's going to keep Pierce off one of his favorite stages). Will Ray Allen be able to get back on the floor tonight and continue the process of settling into that bench role? Beyond health, the Tyson Chandlers-Kevin Garnett matchup should be a defensive-minded war, while Rondo always seems to save some of his finest performances for the 'Bockers (even if Jeremy Lin won't be on the floor this time around).

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BOSTON -- It's a far-too-familiar script (for opponents at least): Ray Allen has a quiet game only to break out at a key moment with a game-changing 3-pointer. Allen might have been battling the lingering effects of the norovirus Sunday, but it was Knicks fans who were left sick to their stomachs after Allen's overtime exploits.

Limited to 2-of-6 shooting for six points through regulation, Allen, who sat out Friday's game due to the stomach bug, made consecutive baskets in overtime -- a monster 3-pointer from the right wing and a layup on the fast break -- to give the Celtics a five-point cushion they utilized to emerge with a 115-111 triumph at TD Garden.

"We call Ray, 'Jesus' -- for obvious reasons," Kevin Garnett said. "And if you don’t know, it’s because he was in a movie ["He Got Game"] and that was his name. And [a character in the movie] used to have a saying that, ‘[Jesus] might not be there when you start, but he’s there when you need him.’ That pretty much sums up Ray. He has a lot of confidence in his shot, a lot of confidence in his ability. We do too. Although he didn’t have the game he wanted, where he’s most impressive is being able to hit big shots."

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BOSTON -- Rapid reaction after the Boston Celtics defeated the New York Knicks 115-111 in overtime Sunday afternoon at TD Garden:

HOW THE GAME WAS WON
Rajon Rondo produced the 17th triple-double of his career in posting 18 points, 17 rebounds and 20 assists, while Paul Pierce added a game-high 34 points on 13-of-23 shooting with 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block. Kevin Garnett struggled with his shot (8-for-22), but added 18 points and 10 rebounds (navigating overtime with five fouls to aid Boston's defensive effort). Carmelo Anthony finished with a team-high 25 points on 8-of-21 shooting for the Knicks.

RONDO MESSES AROUND ... AGAIN
Rondo picked up his 17th career triple-double, including his fourth of the season and third in the past 21 days. As Celtics radio play-by-play man Sean Grande pointed out, this is the 13th triple-double for Rondo on national TV. With all the hype around him in recent days -- and Jeremy Lin on the other side of the floor -- you just knew Rondo was going to bring his A-game. He did it in rather ridiculous fashion, including those game-high 17 rebounds.

LIN HEATS UP LATE
Entering the fourth quarter, Lin owned a mere six points on 3-of-7 shooting with two assists, but aided the Knicks in forcing the extra session. He finished with 14 points on 6-of-16 shooting with five assists and six turnovers. But on this day, the point guard battle belonged to Rondo.

TURNING POINT I
The Celtics stumbled their way through an unsightly second quarter, falling behind by 12 before a little rally before intermission cut the deficit to five (56-51). The Celtics had to be thrilled to stick that close and capitalized with a spirited third frame. After knotting the game at 60 little more than three minutes into the second half, Boston embarked on a 20-5 run, featuring easy buckets around the rim from Rondo, Pierce and Chris Wilcox. A trifecta by Pierce and a fast-break layup by Wilcox (off a Pierce outlet) put the Celtics on top 80-65 with 92 seconds to go in the quarter. Pierce scored 15 points in the quarter on 5-of-8 shooting, while Rondo handed out seven assists and snagged five rebounds. That should have been enough, but ...

TURNING POINT II
The Knicks rallied late to make it a game setting up a back-and-forth duel between Pierce and Anthony over the final two minutes. A Pierce jumper had the Celtics out front 98-95 with 1:51 to play, but Anthony responded with a pair of layups, including a little finger roll to put the Knicks ahead 99-98 with 70 seconds to go. Pierce made a long jumper, only to have Anthony answer with a pull-up of his own in a late shot clock situation. Pierce tried to get back to his sweet spot, but couldn't quite get to the elbow, settling for a long jumper that found the rim with 18.8 seconds to go. He'd get another shot, however, and drilled a 3-pointer over Iman Shumpert from the top of the arc to tie the game at 103. Anthony found back iron on a jumper at the buzzer, which sent the game to overtime and leading us to ...

BOLD PLAY OF THE GAME
Ray Allen, who missed Friday's win over the Nets while battling a stomach bug, had been limited to seven points on 2-of-7 shooting during regulation, but didn't let the norovirus detour him when it mattered most. Running with Rondo, Allen drilled a 3-pointer from the right wing to put Boston out front 108-105 with 3:32 to go in overtime. Allen ran with Rondo again when the point guard tracked down a long rebound, leading to an easy layup and a five-point cushion that Boston rode to the win.

WHAT IT MEANS
It should have been easier, but the Celtics will take a gritty win. Pierce saved the day with his top-of-the-key triple at the end of regulation and really carried the team with his offense for much of the day (working hand-in-hand with Rondo). Boston has won four straight, but this was the marquee victory of the bunch, holding off an Atlantic Division rival and a team they are jockeying with at the bottom of the Eastern Conference playoff seedings.

Neither the Boston Celtics (18-17, 13-8 home) nor the New York Knicks (18-18, 7-9) expected Sunday's matinee (1 p.m., ABC) to be a battle of .500 teams jousting for second place in the Atlantic Division. But as both teams try to iron out the inconsistencies that plagued them over the first half of the season, that's exactly what it will be. Regardless, it's a big game for both sides and to preview the matchup we play a quick game of 2-on-2 with colleague Greg Payne.

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1. The Linsanity hoopla aside, what stands out to you about the Knicks since the last meeting with the Celtics?

Payne: Their enthusiasm. Jeremy Lin and J.R. Smith have been two huge shots in the arm for New York, and the respective returns of Carmelo Anthony and Baron Davis have helped to change the team's entire outlook on the season. A month ago, the Knicks were close to being a train wreck and people were calling for Mike D'Antoni's job. Now they're playing with a renewed spirit, and even more importantly, they seem to be sacrificing and playing together. If they can harness all of the talent that's on that roster and band together heading into the postseason, they'll be a team to be reckoned with.

Forsberg: It's truly fascinating that, one month ago, Lin played a mere six minutes against Boston (the last game before he took over SportsCenter and the world) and the Knicks were mocked when Steve Novak took a potential winning 3-pointer in the final moments of Boston's two-point triumph at TD Garden. Lin has seemingly solved the team's point guard problems and Novak reached double figures in scoring in 8 of 12 games to close out February. As Doc Rivers pointed out, New York not only survived injuries to Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire, but thrived. That's something Boston couldn't do before the All-Star break when it lost five straight while playing without Rajon Rondo, Kevin Garnett, or Brandon Bass at times. There's a ton of talent on this New York roster and if they put things together, they are a super intriguing team, well beyond the Lin fascination.

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BOSTON -- It's easy to forget now, but the Boston Celtics were the last team spared from "Linsanity."

Harvard's Jeremy Lin, playing his ninth game with the New York Knicks earlier this month, logged a mere 6 minutes, 36 seconds of court time against Boston, missing all three shots he took while chipping in a pair of free throws, two rebounds, and an assist as the Celtics emerged with a 91-89 triumph on Feb. 3.

The very next night, Lin produced 25 points and seven assists over 36 minutes against the New Jersey Nets, got elevated into the starting lineup, and, well, he's been dominating SportsCenter -- and, more recently, non-sports programming as well -- as the biggest story in the NBA this season.

Celtics coach Doc Rivers admitted he hasn't seen much of Lin beyond the highlights and the Garden glimpse earlier this month, but he certainly knows what it's like to be a point guard playing on the big stage in the Big Apple.

"It’s New York," Rivers said while discussing the circus-like atmosphere that currently exists around Lin, who handed out a career-high 13 assists to pace the Knicks to their seventh-straight win by topping Sacramento Wednesday evening. "Really, some place else, I don’t know if the attention would be as great. The accomplishment would still be great, but I don’t know if the attention would be as great. Let’s just be honest, what’s making this whole story great is the winning streak. They are winning games while he’s doing this. If he was doing the same numbers and it was all losses, we wouldn’t talk about it.

"It’s a good thing; It’s a good lesson for everyone: If you want some attention, go win."

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BOSTON -- A collection of postgame news and notes after the Boston Celtics defeated the New York Knicks 91-89 Sunday evening at TD Garden:

Quick links: Doc hits campaign trail | Rondo's (black and blue) return | Loose Balls

RIVERS WILL STUMP FOR (ALL-)STARS

Celtics coach Doc Rivers said he'll phone his Eastern Conference coaching brethren this week in hopes of earning a couple Boston guys a free trip to Orlando for the All-Star festivities later this month.

None of the five eligible Celtics landed among the East's All-Star starters based on fan vote (point guard Rajon Rondo was the team's top vote-getter and was a distant third behind Chicago's Derrick Rose and Miami's Dwyane Wade at the guard position). Now, the 30 NBA head coaches will vote for seven players from within their own conference (two guards, two forwards, a center, and two players regardless of position) to comprise the All-Star reserves.

Coaches cannot vote for their own player, hence why cell phones will be burning up this weekend with reserves set to be announced Thursday evening (before the Celtics and Lakers joust on TNT).

"I usually call [other coaches], all my friends -- so that’s usually one call," quipped Rivers. "No, I call guys. I always do, just to make sure. And they call you. Last year was just strange, really, I don’t know what it said, but I didn’t get a call from one coach last year asking me to vote for their player. I thought that was really unusual. This year I think you will get a ton of calls. This year is going to be a lot tougher. There's a lot of guys that are playing well."

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BOSTON -- Rapid reaction after the Boston Celtics defeated the New York Knicks 91-89 Friday night at TD Garden:

HOW THE GAME WAS WON
With Rajon Rondo back in the starting lineup, Paul Pierce kicked it back into scorer mode, connecting on 8 of 22 shots (including 4 of 11 beyond the 3-point arc) while scoring a game-high 30 points (to go along with 7 rebounds and 5 assists) over 43 minutes as the Celtics overcame a 12-point second-half deficit. Pierce might have had three more points, but video replay wiped out what was originally scored a made triple with 16.1 seconds to go in a one-point game. Boston's defense came up with two big stops (Pierce making a free throw in between) to hang on. Ray Allen started slow (2-of-5 shooting for 5 points through three quarters), but caught fire in the final frame, converting a pair of big 3-pointers and a baseline layup to finish with 14 points. Carmelo Anthony paced the Knicks with 26 points, while Tyson Chandler added 20 points and 11 assists.

TURNING POINT
The Celtics had whittled as much as a 12-point deficit down to a bucket with little more than eight minutes to play and it was clear they simply wanted it more than the Knicks when it mattered most. During one sequence, Pierce won a footrace to a loose ball in the backcourt, then, after a miss, Chris Wilcox pried the ball loose from a Knicks player before getting fouled going up with it under the basket. His free throws tied the game at 75. The next possession down, Wilcox got on the ground to force a jump ball. The Celtics didn't pull ahead until Ray Allen's 3-pointer with 4:24 to play (thanks in part to Rondo's hustle to force the Knicks to fumble the ball out of bounds right before the trey), but it was clear from that sequence that Boston would not be denied. The Celtics dominated what we like to call the WIM category (wanted it more) in the fourth quarter.

MILESTONE MOMENT
Kevin Garnett became only the third player in NBA history to register 10,000 defensive rebounds with his fourth of the night late in the first quarter. He joins Karl Malone and Robert Parish as the only other members in that elite club. How did Garnett celebrate? By draining his second 3-pointer in as many games.

DOC GETS A TECH
Unhappy with the calls going against his team in the early portion of Friday's game, Celtics coach Doc Rivers got a little too chirpy with referee Curtis Blair, who hit Rivers with a technical foul (his fourth of the year). The Knicks attempted 17 first-half free throws (making 14, compared to 6-of-9 shooting at the stripe for Boston before the intermission). By the end of the game, Rivers' complaining might have helped even up the shots (the Celtics were 19-of-25 at the stripe; the Knicks were 18-of-21).

WHAT IT MEANS
You ever been in a bar fight, Craig? That one was a lot of fun. Haymakers from both sides and big shots by the truckload late in the game. The Celtics avenge a Christmas Day loss to New York and, with Philadelphia getting blown out by Miami, reassert themselves a bit in the Atlantic Division. Boston has now won eight of its past 10 and keeps the momentum going on this five-game homestand.

Six weeks after opening the 2011-12 season on Christmas Day, the Boston Celtics (11-10, 7-6 home) and New York Knicks (8-14, 4-7 away) renew acquaintances in an Atlantic Division battle Friday night at TD Garden (8 p.m., ESPN). To preview the matchup, which serves as the 1/3 checkpoint of the season for the Celtics, we go 3-on-3 with ESPN Boston's Greg Payne and CelticsHub's Brian Robb.

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1. Carmelo Anthony said last month that he has a "vendetta" against the Celtics after last season's playoff sweep. No one up here even blinked. What's it going to take to make this an honest-to-goodness rivalry?

Payne: All the standard ingredients, including some intense regular-season meetings (the only part of this we received last season), a few spats between players, and a memorable playoff series. Tonight will be interesting, seeing as neither team has played great basketball this season (although the C's have been much better of late), but both are scrapping to work their way back up in the standings. Rivalries, though, often need continuity, and I'm not sure we'll have that with these two teams. This is Anthony's first full season in New York, and while there's always potential for things to ignite this season, the C's will have an overhauled roster at the start of next season, which could wipe away any progress that was made on the rivalry front.

Robb: A competitive team in New York. I hate to be so blunt about it but facts are facts. The C's swept them out of the postseason last year, and despite the opening loss this year, Boston has routinely destroyed the Knicks in regular season play during the entire The Big Three era. While the names are bigger in New York now, the record has become worse and no one around the NBA considers them a serious threat. Until that happens, we'll have to wait on the rivalry.

Forsberg: It would help if the Knicks would put up a consistent fight. Christmas Day was a step in the right direction, but let's face it, the Celtics have won 16 of the last 19 regular-season meetings and swept the Knicks out of the playoffs last season. We've seen a little bit of a hostility with the dust-up at the end of the first meeting when Kevin Garnett put his hand around the neck of old friend Bill Walker, so it will be interesting to see if any emotion carries over to this one. But, bottom line, it's probably going to take a heated postseason series -- one in which the Knicks top the Celtics, or at least push them to their limits -- before anyone in Boston is ready to bust out the "r" word.

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In a playoffs full of surprises, ESPN.com's John Hollinger examines the most surprising players of the first round (Insider), including Boston's Ray Allen:

On the heels of the Celtics' four-game sweep of the Knicks in an Eastern Conference quarterfinal series, we examine specific areas of Boston's postseason play and how it might affect the team moving forward. In the fourth installment of Series Takeaways, we break down Boston's turnovers:

Watching the Celtics turn the ball over 12 times in the second half of Sunday's 101-89 Game 4 victory over the New York Knicks was frustrating, but not exactly surprising. Committing lazy, careless turnovers at inopportune times has been a nasty habit of Boston's ever since the 2007-2008 season. Fortunately, the C's were able to overcome their turnover woes and close out Game 4 by displaying admirable poise over the final seven minutes.

The numbers weren't pretty, though. The Celtics averaged 16.7 turnovers per game over the course of their four-game sweep of the Knicks, committing 18 or more in three of the four games. The Knicks took advantage of Boston's miscues by scoring a total of 72 points off turnovers in the series, good for an average of 18 points per game.

The Celtics boasted a 17-point halftime lead in Game 4, and shot 52.6 percent in the third quarter, but thanks to some hot shooting from the Knicks in the third frame (52.2 percent), coupled with five Boston turnovers, New York was able to claw back to within 10 points heading into the fourth quarter. As opposed to cruising to another easy victory, the Celtics were going to need a valiant fourth quarter effort to hold off the storming Knicks.

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