Celtics drill pesky Hawks

Boston beats Atlanta in Game 7 to win its first playoff series since the 2003 season.

Jimmy Golen | The Associated Press

May 5, 2008

BOSTON - Kevin Garnett took a behind-the-back pass from Paul Pierce, slammed in the dunk to make the lead three dozen points and then slashed his hand across his throat to signal what the Atlanta Hawks already knew.

"It's over," he told the crowd.

The game. The series. The surprising little scare Atlanta put into the NBA's best.

Garnett had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Pierce scored 22 points, and the Celtics turned back the pesky Hawks with a 99-65 victory Sunday in Game 7 of their playoff series to advance to the second round.

Next up: LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Game 1 is Tuesday night in Boston.

"They're a group that's defending Eastern Conference champs," Garnett said. "To do anything, you've got to go through them.

"It's good that we have home-court advantage."

The Celtics started the celebration early, holding the Hawks to 10 points in the second quarter and doubling their 18-point halftime lead in the third.

The fans yelled, "We want Cleveland!"

The public-address announcer explained how to buy tickets for the second round. In the background, the new Boston Garden shook with Gladys Knight and the Pips singing that the Hawks were Leaving on a Midnight Train to Georgia.

"I wish we could have played all of our games in Atlanta," said Coach Mike Woodson, whose team won all three home games but never came close to stealing one in Boston. "Nobody thought we had an opportunity to even win a game in this series. We battled them right to the end."

Rajon Rondo, who missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer in the Game 6 loss that forced the series back to Boston, had 10 points and six assists. Kendrick Perkins had 10 points and 10 rebounds before joining the starters on the bench in the fourth quarter, just like the Celtics did for much of the regular season.

Boston went 66-16 for the league's best record -- 29 games better than the young Hawks team that earned the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The home-court advantage proved pivotal against an upstart that fed off its own crowd but wilted on the road, losing four times by a total of 101 points.

"I really had no doubt in my mind how we were going to come out," Pierce said. "You kind of saw it from the guys after Game 6 on the plane, there wasn't a lot of talking. We knew that we let a couple of games get away in Atlanta and I knew we were just going to take care of business."

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Celtics drill pesky Hawks

Boston beats Atlanta in Game 7 to win its first playoff series since the 2003 season.

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Celtics drill pesky Hawks

Boston beats Atlanta in Game 7 to win its first playoff series since the 2003 season.

Related topic galleries: Gladys Knight, National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, Boston Celtics, LeBron James, Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce

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