BOSTON ? Paul Pierce needed a little time to find his range against the Denver Nuggets.

Pierce scored 21 of his 35 points in the third quarter and Antoine Walker added 28 to lead the Boston Celtics to their fifth straight victory, 95-80 over Denver on Wednesday night.

Pierce outscored the Nuggets by five points in the third period as the Celtics extended a seven-point lead to 22.


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"Offensively, he's playing so well," Boston point guard Kenny Anderson said. "He's a great shooter and is definitely one of the top three scorers in the league."

Boston is on its longest winning streak since