Celtics aim to avoid Detroit breakdown

Series will move to Motown this weekend

NBA. The bags are packed, the onboard meals prepped and practice time reserved for the Celtics in Auburn Hills, Mich.

Perhaps the C’s might want to change up the in-flight entertainment, anything to reverse their fortunes on the road this postseason.

A good place to start might be game tape dated Jan. 5, when Boston — 0-6 on the road this postseason entering Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Saturday — went into Detroit and upended the Pistons, one of the critical blows the C’s threw en route to locking up home court advantage throughout the playoffs. In that one, rookie Glen Davis erupted for 20 points and Boston dominated down the stretch, showing poise in the face of a sellout crowd cursing their every move.

The refresher may help, but as for adjustments, do not expect too many.

“It’s probably not a good sign for either team [to make adjustments], and I don’t think either team is going to do that,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said before Game 2. “Detroit is who they’ve been for years, and they’re not going to come out and be a new team tomorrow. We’re not going to come out and be a new team tomorrow, as well.

“You’ve got to play to the strong suits of your team, and you play around that and that’s what you try to do.”

Maybe another history lesson would serve well, one that delves deep into the teams’ rivalry.

Twenty-one years ago Saturday, the C’s ventured into the Pontiac Silverdome for Game 4 of a now-legendary Eastern Conference finals with the Pistons. They left with their tails between their legs, courtesy of a 145-119 Pistons pasting that tied that series at two games apiece.

The 145 points remain the most ever scored against the Celtics in the playoffs, and, considering Boston’s remarkable seven-game series win that year, a lesson learned. Now it’s time for this edition to show they are capable of learning from mistakes.