L.A. edges Celtics in overtime

BOSTON — Paul Pierce’s shot rimmed out in the final seconds of overtime, and Pau Gasol knew the game wasn’t over yet. The ball bounced to Ray Allen, who gave it a two-handed push back toward the basket.

“That shot that Ray Allen took was good, in my opinion,” Los Angeles Lakers coach Mike Brown said. “But Pau did not stop playing until he heard the horn, and he came up with the big block.”

Gasol had 25 points, 14 rebounds and a key block of Allen’s putback attempt at the overtime buzzer Thursday night and the Lakers held on to beat the Celtics, 88-87. Kobe Bryant scored 27 points and Andrew Bynum had 16 points and 17 boards for Los Angeles, which snapped a two-game losing streak.

Allen scored 22 points and Kevin Garnett had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Boston, which had won five in a row and nine of its previous 10 games. But Garnett was 6-for -23 from the field and Pierce was 7-for-18, including a clean-look jumper at the end of overtime.

It went right to Allen. He tried to push the rebound in, but Gasol got his fingertips on it and it floated away as the buzzer sounded.

“I was in the perfect position,” Allen said, “and he came out of nowhere.”

Gasol also made a smart play in the fourth quarter, when the 6-foot-11 Garnett lined up for a jump ball against 6-foot-1 Derek Fisher. Gasol read the play and the Lakers wound up with the ball.

But the block at the end of the game clinched it.

“I’ve been in situations before in my career where you freeze … catch yourself looking at the ball and end up losing the game,” Gasol said.

The Lakers had lost six of their previous seven games on the road.

But a trip to Boston to play the rival Celtics was just what they needed.

SLAM DUNKS

Aldridge an All-Star: After what many thought was a snub last year, LaMarcus Aldridge is finally an All-Star. The Trail Blazers’ forward earned his spot on the Western Conference team in voting by the conference’s coaches. The All-Star starters were selected in fan voting. Aldridge, who is in his sixth season, is averaging 23.3 points and 8.5 rebounds. Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki, despite one of the worst seasons of his NBA career, was named an All-Star for the 11th consecutive time. Other Western reserves are: Phoenix’s Steve Nash, San Antonio’s Tony Parker, Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook, Memphis’ Marc Gasol and Minnesota’s Kevin Love. The Eastern Conference reserves are: Boston’s Paul Pierce, New Jersey’s Deron Williams, Atlanta’s Joe Johnson, Miami’s Chris Bosh, Philadelphia’s Andre Iguodala, Indiana’s Roy Hibbert, and Chicago’s Luol Deng.

Fastbreaks: Cavaliers rookie point guard Kyrie Irving remains day to day because of a concussion. … The Hawks, short-handed at center, signed 15-year veteran center Erick Dampier to a 10-day contract.