Garden crowd quieted by Celts

Doc Rivers didn't care much about whether Amar'e Stoudemire would play or not Friday night. The Celtics coach was more concerned about his team getting right.

They did, and in resounding fashion as the Celtics hushed a raucous Madison Square Garden crowd hungry for the Knicks' first home playoff game in seven years.

The Celtics showed the overall complete game that made them NBA finalists twice in the last three years, and now has the Knicks staring at elimination after a 113-96 loss Friday night.

If the Celtics play the same way Sunday in Game 4 of the best-of-seven first-round series, they could sweep the Knicks, giving Stoudemire plenty of time to rest his injured back.

The Knicks' All-Star big man clearly wasn't himself as he finished with seven points, but the Celtics looked like their old selves.

Paul Pierce scored 38 points on 14for19 shooting, including 6-of-8 from three-point land. Ray Allen hit eight threes and finished with 32 points, and Rajon Rondo had an eye-popping 15-point, 20-assist, 11-rebound triple-double.

"It was a conscious effort to run our offense," Rivers said. "Paul and Ray were the focus. I thought Rondo had one of those great catcher games, one of those [Jason] Varitek games. He called a terrific game. That's a great sign for us, because when he does that it allows us to run pretty much what we want to run."

In the first two games in Boston, the Celtics weren't that impressive, aside from their end-of-game execution. But with Rondo leading them in Game 3, the Celtics went through stretches where they did whatever they wanted.

It started in the first quarter as they came out primed to run the Knicks off their own court. Eight minutes in, Boston led 22-5. The cushion came from a combination of Knicks sloppiness and Celtics effectiveness.

The Knicks roared back to draw within five on five different occasions in the second quarter. But the Celtics took control in the third.

They outscored the Knicks 34-19, registering the highest-scoring quarter either team had in this series. The Celtics shot 14for23 in the period and built a 23-point lead.

"We put together four quarters," Rondo said. "In the second half we played our game and we opened the game up."

It allowed Rivers, who said before the game he was "worried about getting our rhythm," to exhale. The Celtics found it with Rondo as the catalyst.

"He got himself into a rhythm," Rivers said.

"He got us into a rhythm and allowed us to make calls. When he gets into a rhythm it allows all of us, even the coaches, to get into a rhythm."

BRIEFS: Rivers said he hopes Shaquille O'Neal (strained right calf) will play at some point in this series. "He's on the road, which means he's getting better and he's closer," Rivers said. "I don't know if he'll play Sunday or not. We'll probably find out a little bit more [today]."

The Celtics may not need him.