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Playoff-bound Celts host resurgent Clippers

Mar 9, 2011 - 4:05 PM (Sports Network) - With their fourth straight playoff berth secured, the Boston Celtics can focus on staying atop the Eastern Conference when they welcome the Los Angeles Clippers to TD Garden tonight.

Boston, currently the East's top seed at 2 1/2 games ahead of Chicago, have won five in a row and eight of its last nine games. In Sunday's 89-83 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks at the Bradley Center, Paul Pierce had 23 points, Nenad Krstic posted 17 and Kevin Garnett added 14 points and 11 rebounds.

"I told our guys before the game, 'We have two teams with a hundred injuries. They have starters out. We have our entire bench out.' It was going to be a funky game and someone was going to have to win it. Let it be us," Celtics head coach Doc Rivers said.

Ray Allen and Jeff Green finished with 13 and 11 points, respectively, for the Atlantic Division-leading Celtics, who look to extend their home winning streak to five games. They also have one of the top home records at 27-5.

Garnett is averaging a double-double with 15.7 points and 10.3 rebounds in his previous 12 games. Pierce (945 games) is closing in on Bill Russell (963) for fourth on the team's all-time games played list.

The Clippers, meanwhile, will try to extend their winning streak to a season high four games tonight and are coming off Monday's 92-87 victory over Charlotte in the opener of a five-game road swing.

Blake Griffin and Mo Williams each scored 17 points, with Griffin completing his 54th double-double on 15 rebounds. Chris Kaman added 16 points and 10 boards for Los Angeles, which ended a four-game slide as the visitor.

"We stepped it up in the second half," Clippers head coach Vinny Del Negro said. "We picked up our intensity."

LA is just 6-25 away from home this season and will also make stops in New Jersey, Washington and Memphis. Meanwhile, Griffin is one double-double away of matching Elton Brand's Los Angeles record of 55 established during the 2001-02 season. Bob McAdoo holds the franchise record with 69 double-doubles set in 1974-75, when the franchise was formerly known as the Buffalo Braves.

Griffin passed the 53 double-doubles mark set by Michael Cage in 1986-87. Kaman posted his first double-double since Oct. 31 against the Bobcats and led the team with 33 a season ago. Williams is averaging 16.8 points, 7.0 assists and 1.8 rebounds in four games since coming over via trade with Cleveland.

Boston recently defeated the Clippers, 99-92, on Feb. 26 at Staples Center behind Pierce's 24 points and Allen's 22. Foye led the Clips with 32 points in that one, but the Celtics have won five of the past seven meetings. The Clippers have lost three straight and 10 of 13 trips to Beantown.