Paul Pierce took an inadvertent shot from Tyrus Thomas early in the third quarter and walked off the floor with blood spurting from his mouth. It came on a loose ball situation and it looked like Pierce had a tooth knocked out. The play continued with Kendrick Perkins getting two free throws after the C’s played 4-on-5.

Tony Allen replaced Pierce in the lineup.

At the half … Celtics 49, Bulls 31

• Kevin Garnett leads all scorers with 16 points. Derrick Rose leads the Bulls with 10.
• The Celtics outscored the Bulls 30-12 in the paint.
• The Celtics also outrebounded the Bulls 27-23. KG pulled down seven boards.
• Tyrus Thomas and Luol Deng shot a combined 2-for-17.
• Leon Powe scored seven points in seven minutes off the bench. Ben Gordon was scoreless in nearly 12 minutes as a reserve.