Pierce scored 40 points on just 16 shots in Boston's 103-91 win.
Boston Celtics forward Paul Pierce (34) acknowledges the crowd as he leaves the court late in the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Boston, Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2012. Pierce scored 40 points to lead the Celtics to a 103-91 victory. Celtics forward Chris Wilcox watches at left.
What should a Boston Celtics opponent do with Paul Pierce when he's hot enough to burn the sun?
After covering Pierce for many of his 40 points Wednesday night, Cleveland Cavaliers wing Alonzo Gee still isn't sure.
"I actually was trying to talk to him," Gee said, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, "but it wasn't working."
During Boston's 103-91 win, Pierce needed just 16 field goal attempts to hit the 40-point mark for the first time since April 17 of last season.
He went 6-7 on 3-pointers, 8-8 on free throws and 13-16 from the field. He scored 15 points in the first half, added 17 in the third quarter, and returned with 9:26 left in the fourth quarter to score eight points in a 10-2 run that finally put the pesky Cavaliers to bed.
"I was like, 'Man calm down a little bit,'" Gee said. "He said, 'I'm just trying to make you better.'
"It's all good though. He played a great game and made a lot of shots."
What do you do with Pierce when he's hot enough to give the devil a sunburn?
"There was nothing we could do with him tonight," Cavaliers coach Byron Scott said. "A great player like that, a future Hall of Famer, sometimes they get it going and there's really nothing much you can do. Paul got it going. He hit some shots tonight. I haven't seen him play that way in a while. Sometimes you just gotta pat him on the butt and say great job."