Ray Allen and Kendrick Perkins stood on the sidelines in applause — their way of saying, "Thanks for picking us up."

In the second half, Allen and Perkins had just watched the Cavaliers take their first lead since early in the first quarter and seize momentum. But it was the trio of Tony Allen, Glen Davis and Rasheed Wallace that helped snatch it back.

Up by only two at the end of the third quarter, the Celtics went on a critical 10-0 run to start the fourth. Eight points came from Davis and Tony Allen. The key stretch reclaimed control of the game and allowed the starters come back in to finish off the job in their 97-87 victory.

“They carried us,” said Ray Allen. “The bench was big for us in that stretch in the fourth quarter. They were so big that it was like the team was reeling and they just picked us up.”

The trio of Tony Allen, Davis and Wallace combined for 23 points, 11 rebounds, five steals and four blocked shots. Tony Allen scored 15 points alone off an efficient 6-for-7 shooting performance. In contrast, the entire Cavs bench had 11 points, seven rebounds, two steals and a block.

The tandem played more than 64 minutes, a critical contribution as Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, Kendrick Perkins and Paul Pierce were restricted by foul trouble. Ray Allen fouled out of the game while Garnett, Perkins and Pierce were each called for five.

“The bench has been the key for us when we win, or when we lose,” said Garnett. “I think T.A. is playing at a high level, so is Glen. I told Rasheed that after Game 1 we are going to need him, and we are going to need him effectively.”

Doc Rivers deemed Wallace’s performance “amazing” and considered Tony Allen to be the biggest reason why the C’s won — after Rajon Rondo’s triple-double. Rivers pointed out that he told his players they are not going to beat the Cavaliers individually, but they had a chance if they played as a unit.

Pierce echoed the point.

“Our bench is big for us. We can’t win without them,“ said Pierce. “We have great confidence [in them] because we know between Baby, Rasheed, Tony Allen … one of them is going to play really well for us and consistent. These guys understand their role, they’re confident in their role, and if they can continue to do the little things that the coaches ask them to, they’re going to flourish.”

The reserves are more than happy to do the small things for the Celtics. In fact, that’s what they consider to be their strong point. The starting five has provided 75 percent of the Celtics offense in this series, and the bench understands their role is to fill in the gaps.

“I look at us as a blue-collar group,” said Tony Allen. “We need to do the extra effort things — loose balls, rebound, charges, showing hard, [rotating] to the ball. We need to do everything hard, and that’s mainly what we put our focus in the fourth today.”

The bench’s reliability also gives the starting five an invaluable opportunity to rest. The starters are averaging over 30 minutes per game this series, while Ray Allen and Rondo are both averaging more than 44. With Game 5 approaching Tuesday in Cleveland, any breathers are welcome.

“It was great to be on the bench and be able to cheer them on. Doc doesn’t have the great pressure to put us back in. He can let them ride it out, so I was glad to be sitting over there,” Ray Allen said. “It’s encouraging, too, because they are playing well and we can continue to support them from the sideline because they deserve to be in there as well.”

Just as the reserves embrace their role of supporting the starting five, the starters enjoy showing their encouragement as well. There is no division between the two groups on this team-first squad, as each player has the same end result in mind. To the Celtics, it doesn’t matter if they are cheering from the bench or the floor.

“We all feed each other,” said Perkins. “We’ve got one goal and that’s to win it no matter who’s on the court. If you’re on the sidelines you’ve got to encourage your teammates to do good, and we’ve just got to take it home.”