The defending-champion Celtics escaped Game 5 with an overtime win over the Bulls thanks to some heroics from Paul Pierce.

"It got real physical out there, as you could see," said Pierce. "But this team has a never-die attitude. I mean, we've been down in a lot of games where we've shown we can come back. And that's just one of the characteristics of this team. We never look up and say, 'This game is over,' regardless of the time, the score."

Pierce hit three jumpers in a little more than a minute at the end of the extra period to seal Boston's victory over Chicago.