AUBURN HILLS, Mich. – For nearly a month now, the Boston Celtics have listened to faint praise during their run to the Eastern Conference finals.

As the Celtics outlasted the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers, they were congratulated but also questioned. The fact that each series went seven full games -- more specifically, the fact that they lost all six road games in the two series -- cast a cloud of doubt on the team’s chances for the ultimate prize, an NBA championship.

Paul Pierce and the rest of the Celtics were more than a bit tired of hearing about the road woes.

Saturday night at the Palace of Auburn Hills, they finally did something about it.

"I said before the game, I told the guys, 'Hey, during the regular season we were the best team in the league on the road.' " said Pierce. " 'So let's go out here and try to show them. Everything that happened before is behind us, this starts right now, zero-zero.’

"That's the way we came out from the start of the game."

The Celtics, who went 31-10 on the road during the regular season, did just that. They threw a quick 11-0 run at the Pistons to start the game, and the home team and its rowdy crowd never really recovered as Boston sailed to a 94-80 win in Game Three of the Eastern Conference finals.

After losing their home-court advantage in the best-of-seven series only two nights earlier, the Celtics grabbed it right back and now hold a 2-1 lead, with Game Four set for Monday night.

"We got down early and that killed us," said Detroit’s Richard Hamilton. "In the games we’ve lost in the playoffs, we’ve gotten down early. We have to come out better instead of playing catch-up all night."

The Celtics built on their 11-0 start to lead by 18 points at both the half and after three quarters. Desperate for any spark, Detroit scrambled its defense and cut the deficit to nine with three minutes left, but the Celts scored the next five points to ice the game away.

Kevin Garnett led the way with 22 points and 13 rebounds, but the Celtics flashed great scoring balance with six players in double figures. Ray Allen added 14 and Rajon Rondo, Kendrick Perkins and James Posey all chipped in with 12.

Hamilton led all scorers with 26 points but Detroit struggled on offense all night, shooting only 38 percent shooting from the floor.

"I thought we had a lot of energy sucked out of us when we were missing some shots (early) and then had a lot of breakdowns in our defensive coverage,” said Pistons’ coach Flip Saunders.

The Pistons now face almost a must-win situation Monday night. Rasheed Wallace shrugged off that reality, saying, "I don’t see it as a big thing. Whoever gets to four (wins) first."

Saunders, however, stated that Monday night "is a crucial game for us. No ifs, ands or buts. That's our biggest game of the year. We've got to come out and be aggressive in everything we do. This is the first time they were in a situation where they had to win to kind of keep a hold of the series, and they did it. They did what they needed to do, and now we've got to do what we need to do as far as at [playing at] home. I think both teams know right now that they can win on the other team's floor, so you'd better be at the top of your game."

The Celtics were on top of their game early as they played about as perfect a first half as they could have hoped for. Even so, they opened up their 18-point lead in an unconventional way.

Boston shot out to the 11-0 lead as the Pistons clearly were knocked back on their heels by the Celts' energy out of the gate. The Pistons then were helped by some quick Boston foul trouble, as both Garnett and Allen picked up two fouls and left the game for the final four minutes of the quarter. That opened the door for Boston’s reserves and -- after Detroit had fought back to take a 17-15 edge -- they responded with a 10-0 run to close the quarter, with James Posey and Sam Cassell knocking down 3-pointers to help the Celts to a 25-17 lead.

The Celtics saw their lead shrink to 29-25 midway through the second quarter, but they regrouped and closed the half with a stirring 21-7 run. That gave them a 50-32 edge at the half, even though Pierce only shot one time and Allen missed five of his six attempts. The Celtics, unlike Thursday night, received a huge boost from their bench as Posey and Cassell combined for 13 of the reserves’ 18 points.

The defense was the biggest key. The Pistons made just 31 percent of their first-half shots and would’ve been in even bigger trouble if bench men Rodney Stuckey (who finished the game with 17 points) and Jason Maxiell didn’t score seven points apiece in the first two quarters. Tayshaun Prince (1-of-7) and Hamilton (2-of-9) did most of the missing for the home team, and floor leader Chauncey Billups barely showed up with one field-goal attempt and one assist in 13 undistinguished first-half minutes.

The Pistons needed a quick third-quarter push but the Celtics weren’t in the giving mood. Garnett swished a 17-footer to open the scoring and boost the lead to 52-32 before the Pistons could break a sweat. With its white-clad crowd almost dead quiet, Detroit closed to 13 points at 56-43, but the Celtics responded with a 17-6 punch that knocked the home team to the canvas for a commanding 73-49 lead.

Boston did much of its damage inside (34 points in the paint), with Perkins making two rare jump shots and Garnett feeding Allen for a layup, but Pierce also swished a 3-point dagger at the shot clock buzzer with 1:15 left as he posed in front of the Detroit bench. The Pistons scored the final six points of the quarter yet still trailed 73-55 after three.

Detroit made some minor pushes early in the fourth quarter, but back-breaking 3-point shots by Pierce and Allen kept the Celtics in control. The Pistons had one more rush in their tank and cut the deficit under 10 (87-78) for the first time since the first quarter after a Billups 3-pointer and Prince jam, but the Celtics’ defense stiffened and closed the game out without incident.

kmcnamar@projo.com / 401-277-7340