Ray Allen (photo. Jordan Brand)

* Ray Allen is on fire right now, but he’s getting it just as good as he’s giving it from Rip Hamilton. Both have 13 points. (And that play where Ray grazed Rip with his elbow and Rip took a Walter Payton-ish dive was one of those flops guys should get fined for next year.) If Kevin Garnett wasn’t mimicking Pau Gasol‘s first half from last night’s Lakers/Spurs game, the C’s would be in very good shape.

* In yesterday’s Smack we said any elimination or close-out game comes down to how your best player performs. The thing with both of these teams is that they have multiple guys who can be “that guy” on any given night. If you had to give an instant answer you’d probably go with Chauncey Billups and Paul Pierce. As it stands now, Billups (18 pts) has the upper hand but P-Double’s team has the lead. Can he carry that through the second half and lead a comeback?

* If the Celtics have proven to be consistently incapable of handling Detroit’s full-court trapping defense, why doesn’t Flip Saunders do it more often?

* How awakward was that interview with Kendrick Perkins and Rajon Rondo? They both looked like they were sitting across from Bill Duke in the interrogation room in Menace II Society.