05/05/2008 10:21 AM
Paul Pierce scored 22 points as the Boston Celtics eliminated the Atlanta Hawks with a resounding 99-65 victory in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.
Kevin Garnett added 18 points and 11 rebounds for the top-seeded Celtics, who won four times at home in the best-of-seven match-up by an average of 25.2 points.
Boston will face the fourth-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in the conference semi-finals with Game 1 on Tuesday.
After holding Atlanta to just 26 points in the first half, Boston went to Pierce, who nailed a three-pointer to start the third quarter and scored 11 in the period to help the Celtics build a 36 point advantage entering the fourth quarter.
Despite the blowout, tensions ran high in the third thanks to Hawks forward Marvin Williams, who was called for a flagrant-two foul on Boston guard Rajon Rondo. The second-year point guard was clotheslined by Williams, who was subsequently ejected.
Rondo hit the ensuing free throws and Ray Allen drilled a three-pointer to give Boston a 56-28 lead with eight-and-a-half minutes left in the third.
Boston began the game with aggressive interior play, outscoring Atlanta 20-4 in the paint. Kendrick Perkins was a big part of that, collecting eight points and six rebounds during that span.
As a result, the Celtics were able to hold the Hawks to a record low 43 points through three quarters.
Tough rookie Al Horford - a catalyst in the first six games - had eight points and 12 rebounds and Johnson added 16 points for the Hawks, who were making their first appearance in the post-season since 1999.
Meanwhile, Kobe Bryant poured in 24 of his 38 points in the first half to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 109-98 victory over the Utah Jazz to capture Game 1 of their Western Conference semi-finals series.
Pau Gasol chipped in 18 points and 10 rebounds and Lamar Odom had 16 and nine for the Lakers, who host Game 2 on Tuesday.
Bryant, who reportedly will capture his first league Most Valuable Player Award later in the week, put on a performance worthy of the honour as he nailed a post-season career high 21 free throws and added seven assists and six rebounds.
The 10-time All-Star did it despite cold shooting in the fourth quarter as he hit just one-of-six shots but made up for it with a pair of timely assists down the stretch.
Leading by as many as nine in the fourth, the Lakers saw the Jazz go on a 7-2 run to get them as close as 91-87 with 4:44 left.
But the Jazz would go scoreless over the next two minutes, and the Lakers would take advantage.
With it only a two-possession game, Bryant found Gasol streaking to the basket on consecutive plays, the latter putting Los Angeles ahead 101-90 with just under a minute remaining.
Bryant was brilliant in a dominant opening half in which he hit all 11 free-throw attempts as the Lakers built up a 51-34 advantage thanks to 17-6 spurt which spanned a good portion of the second quarter.
A three-pointer by Deron Williams to beat the buzzer cut Lakers' lead to 79-72 heading into the final quarter.
Mehmet Okur collected 21 points and a play-off career high 19 rebounds and Williams had 14, nine and nine assists for the Jazz, who out-rebounded the Lakers 58-41, which included 25 offensive boards.