Celtics trip Pacers to salvage road trip finale

Delonte West and Wally Szczerbiak both scored 16 points and Tony Allen added 14 off the bench for the Celtics, who were able to salvage one win to end their four-game road trip.

Peja Stojakovic scored 16 points and Danny Granger had 14, while Stephen Jackson and Jeff Foster both chipped in 13 points for the Pacers, who have lost two of their last three games.

Boston took a one-point lead into the final stanza, but went on a 9-0 run early in the quarter to build a nine-point cushion. Allen scored seven of the nine points during the burst.

The Pacers could only get as close as six the rest of the way and with 2:41 remaining the Celtics put the game away as Pierce hit a turnaround jumper to start an 8-0 run that gave Boston a 15-point lead, 101-86, with 58 seconds to play.

Foster sparked a 10-2 run with a pair of layups and capped it with two free throws as Indiana took a 24-13 lead in the first quarter en route to a 36-24 advantage after one quarter.

The Celtics tied it by halftime, 53-53, as they outscored the Pacers 9-0 over the final three minutes of the half. Pierce and Ryan Gomes combined to score all nine points during the spurt. Pierce led Boston with 11 points in the first half.

Neither team could gain separation in third quarter as Boston held the largest lead at six points when Pierce drove the lane and threw down a dunk to put the Celtics up 61-55. Indiana quickly responded with six unanswered points to tie the game.

Game Notes

Celtics head coach Doc Rivers was not with the team due to a death in the family. Assistant coach Tony Brown took over for Rivers...The Celtics had lost four of their previous five games entering Sunday...Boston has now won all three meetings between the teams this season...The Celtics shot 53.4 percent from the field while Indiana hit on only 39.5 percent.