Hawks stun Celtics to pull even while Magic advances

The Boston Celtics, who posted the best regular-season record in the National Basketball Association, were upset for the second game in a row by Atlanta, the worst team to make the playoffs.

Joe Johnson scored 20 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter to spark the Hawks past Boston 97-92 here Monday, leveling their Eastern Conference first round best-of-seven series at two wins each.

Orlando became the first team to reach the second round of the NBA playoffs, with Dwight Howard scoring 21 points and grabbing 21 rebounds to lead the Magic past Toronto 102-92 for a four games to one victory in their series.

But the East stunner came in Atlanta, where the Hawks trailed 75-65 entering the fourth quarter but outscored the Celtics 32-17 in the final 12 minutes thanks to Johnson and Josh Smith, who combined for Atlanta's last 34 points.

The Celtics claimed a home-court edge throughout the NBA playoffs with a 66-16 record while the Hawks had the worst record of any playoff team at 37-45.

But after two blowout victories at home, the Celtics find themselves coming back to Boston level with game five Wednesday and game six Friday at Atlanta. A seventh-game would be Sunday in Boston if necessary.

The Boston-Atlanta winner will face either Cleveland or Washington in the second round. The Cavaliers lead Washington 3-1 in that series and host game five on Wednesday.

Ray Allen led the Celtics with 21 points while Kevin Garnett added 20 points and Paul Pierce added 18.

Smith had 28 points and Mike Bibby scored 18 points for the Hawks, who answered an 11-0 Boston run with a 19-6 burst to reclaim the lead at 84-79, a Johnson 3-pointer ending the critical spurt.

Johnson scored 10 consecutive Atlanta points to keep the Celtics at bay down the stretch, the last of the run being a free throw for a 91-87 Atlanta lead with 39.7 seconds remaining after James Posey's 3-pointer had pulled Boston within three.

Pierce lost control driving to the basket for a layup on the next possession and Smith added two free throws for Atlanta. Allen hit a layup for Boston but Johnson added two free throws to reclaim the six-point edge.

Posey sank another 3-pointer to lift the Celtics within 95-92 with 4.3 seconds to play, but Smith hit two final free throws - completing a 29-of-33 performance at the line by the Hawks - to create the final margin.

At Orlando, it was the superb performance by 23-year-old Howard that lifted the Magic into the second round for the first time since 1996 when Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway were stars for the club.

Jameer Nelson added 19 points while Rashard Lewis contributed 18 points and 13 rebounds for the Magic, who will face the winner between Detroit and Philadelphia in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Philadelphia and Detroit are level at 2-2 in their series with game five Tuesday at Detroit and game six Thursday at Philadelphia.

The Raptors led 50-49 at half-time but the Magic outscored Toronto 25-18 in the third quarter and held off the Canadian club in the final quarter to capture the clincher and win the best-of-seven series four games to one.

Chris Bosh led Toronto with 16 points while T.J. Ford and Carlos Delfino each added 14 for the Raptors, who closed within 84-82 midway into the final quarter on a Bosh hook shot.

Keith Bogans sank two 3-point shots in an 11-2 run by Orlando in response that secured the victory and the series.