(My Sportsbook) - It took some tinkering by head coach Jim O'Brien, but the Boston Celtics seem to be out of their turn-of-the-year funk.

The Celtics have won their last two games after dropping 10 of their previous 12. Boston stymied the Atlanta Hawks, 86-66, on Wednesday before posting an impressive 98-93 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Friday.

Paul Pierce scored 31 points Friday and Antoine Walker also scored 31 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for Boston, which used a 9-0 run late in the fourth quarter to rally for the win.

The Celtics actually held a 14-point cushion at 77-63 with 3:23 remaining in the third quarter, but the Pacers responded with a 17-2 burst over the third and fourth quarters to grab an 80-79 advantage.

"You know they're going to make a run. They're a good team," Pierce said. "What we had to do was make a stand."

Indiana pushed its edge to 91-86 with 3:42 to play, but Boston countered with nine unanswered points, sparked by a three-pointer from J.R. Bremer, to take a 95-91 advantage with 1:14 left. Pierce sank two huge baskets to complete the stretch and put Boston ahead for good.

The Pacers closed within two before regaining possession, but Reggie Miller missed on a three-point attempt and Boston corralled the rebound. The Celtics held on from there.

"I thought we got good looks down the stretch but couldn't seem to find anything to fall," said Miller. "Pierce's two buckets were big. They made more plays and bigger plays down the stretch then we did."

Bremer, who started at point guard for the third straight game, finished with 12 points. The rookie out of St. Bonaventure has averaged 14.3 points over the last four games after having his minutes (34.5 pg) increased by O'Brien.

Bremer, who scored a career-high 22 against Houston on Monday, has seen more action thanks to an injury to Tony Delk and poor play from Shammond Williams. But when Delk is healthy, it could be hard for O'Brien to send Bremer, more of a pure point guard, back to the bench.

Delk returned Friday after missing the previous two games with a sprained ankle and scored just three points in 15 minutes off the pine. Center Tony Battie missed his second straight game and fourth of the season with a sore right knee.

Grant Long, the Celtics' newest acquisition, was not with the team Friday because he was attending his grandmother's funeral. The forward is expected to rejoin the team on Sunday.

Long was signed through the rest of the year Thursday to help a Boston team hampered by injuries. Long, a 14-year veteran, last played in the 2001-02 season with the Memphis Grizzlies.

Boston heads out on the road for matchups with Milwaukee and Philadelphia before returning to the FleetCenter for a three-game homestand.