Boston ? Paul Pierce didn’t let his frustration take away from his game when it mattered.

Pierce had a brief argument with Boston coach Doc Rivers when he was lifted from the game, but returned and made a key three-pointer that helped the Celtics beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 101-100, Wednesday night.

Pierce, who led Boston with 23 points, was taken out with just over 41/2 minutes to play and the Celtics holding a 92-91 lead. The forward appeared agitated when Jiri Welsch came in for him. Rivers and Pierce briefly yelled at each other.

After a chat in the huddle between Pierce and Rivers during a timeout, Pierce returned and hit his three-pointer on Boston’s first possession, giving the Celtics a 97-93 lead with 2:40 to go.

Rivers said he was upset because he didn’t think Pierce was heading out quickly enough on the fast-break chances.

“There really was no issue, except for I wanted everybody to run the floor,” Rivers said. “I didn’t think he was running the floor on the last couple of possessions.”

When Pierce walked back out onto the court, veteran teammate Gary Payton spoke to him briefly — before setting him up for his three-pointer from the right wing.

“Paul is a competitor,” Payton said. “I emphasized to him, ‘We don’t need that. We need wins’. … We’ve got a lot of young kids. They’ve been playing so many years and nobody can say anything to them. They don’t understand sometimes you’ve got to listen to what the coach says.”

Pierce left quickly and didn’t speak to the media.

Boston's Paul Pierce, right, pressures Milwaukee's Desmond Mason. The Celtics defeated the Bucks, 101-100, Wednesday night in Boston.

Spurs 105, 76ers 72

San Antonio — Tim Duncan scored 24 points, including 17 straight in the second quarter, leading San Antonio over Philadelphia.

Bulls 92, Lakers 84

Chicago — Rookies Luol Deng and Ben Gordon rescued Chicago in the fourth quarter, and the Bulls held off a late charge by Kobe Bryant to beat Los Angeles. Deng and Gordon scored nine points each in the fourth quarter as Chicago earned just its second win in 12 games.

Suns 120, Cavaliers 101

Phoenix — Amare Stoudemire, Steve Nash and Quentin Richardson each scored 21 points, and Phoenix won its ninth in a row. Joe Johnson scored 18 points and held Cleveland’s LeBron James to 6-for-19 shooting for 15 points — 11 under his average.

Magic 129, Raptors 108

Orlando, Fla. — Steve Francis scored 23 points, Grant Hill added 17, and Orlando posted the NBA’s highest-scoring game of the season with a thrashing of Toronto. Eight Orlando players scored in double figures as the Magic shot 57.3 percent (51-for-89) and held a rebounding advantage of 61-32.

Knicks 90, Grizzlies 82

New York — Stephon Marbury made five three-pointers in the second quarter to help put the Knicks ahead for good. The loss was the fifth straight for Memphis, and the fourth since the unexpected resignation of coach Hubie Brown.

Wizards 95, Nets 68

Washington — Washington welcomed coach Eddie Jordan back with a victory over his former team, sending New Jersey to its sixth consecutive road loss. Jordan, 49, was hospitalized because of a blood clot in his left leg on Thanksgiving and missed two games. Gilbert Arenas had a season-high 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists to lead the Wizards to their fifth victory in six games.

T’wolves 107, Warriors 99

Oakland, Calif. — Sam Cassell had 26 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists, and Minnesota rallied in the fourth quarter for its third straight victory. Kevin Garnett had 17 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists for the Timberwolves.

Sonics 129, Jazz 119, OT

Seattle — Ray Allen scored a season-high 38 points, including nine in overtime, and Seattle overcame Carlos Boozer’s career-high 36-point performance for a victory over Utah. While the surprising Sonics improved their record to 14-3, the Jazz lost their third straight — and fifth in six games. Seattle’s Vladimir Radmanovic tied it at 110 with a three-pointer from the top of the circle with 10.5 seconds remaining in regulation after Boozer sank two free throws with 18.2 seconds on the clock.

Clippers 88, Pacers 76

Los Angeles — Elton Brand scored 27 points, Bobby Simmons added 20 and Los Angeles held on to beat the short-handed Indiana for its fifth straight victory. The Clippers have won five in a row for the first time since November 1995.

Kings 94, Hornets 81

New Orleans — Brad Miller’s 24 points and clutch outside shooting by Bobby Jackson and Peja Stojakovic lifted Sacrament over New Orleans and kept the Hornets winless at home.