Whether or not the Hawks and Celtics meet in the playoffs, bad blood has been brewing between the teams, which should set up some entertaining matchups in the future.

Saturday's game at Philips Arena added a bit more fuel to that fire, with double technical fouls on Kevin Garnett and Marvin Williams with 3:51 to play before halftime.

The jawing between both teams actually began earlier when Hawks coach Mike Woodson and Celtics center Kendrick Perkins had words as Perkins walked to the bench after picking up a foul.

Both sides clearly anticipate seeing each other in the playoffs, provided the Hawks lock up their berth this week.

"It wouldn't be an easy series," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said before the game. "They're athletic as heck. We've struggled with athletic teams — Charlotte, Philadelphia, Washington. So it would be absolutely a tough matchup. But it's what I told our guys. With what we're trying to achieve, it should be tough and it will be tough. We just have to get ready for that."

The Hawks are expecting as much. And they expect to be an underdog.

"We're a team that has nothing to lose. We're a team that's going to go out there and just fight," Josh Childress said. "No one expects us to win. No one expected us to be in this position to begin with. So if the time comes and we do match up with them, it'll be great on our end.

"We just have to go out there and play. They're the ones with the pressure. They have to beat us because if they don't, it'll be the greatest upset. We just have to go out there and play hard."

Celtics send a message

Celtics All-Star Paul Pierce admitted that sending a message was definitely on the mind of the visiting team Saturday, be it the starters or the reserves.

"When you're playing a team that you might see in the first round of the playoffs, you want to beat them because you don't want them to think they can beat you," he said. "You don't want to give a team like this confidence going into the playoffs. They are a very talented team. On any given night, Joe Johnson can go for big numbers, and he was great tonight. Joe, Mike Bibby and Josh Smith are a great trio, and one of the great up and coming trios in the NBA, and with their role players they can be very dangerous."

Hawks host largest crowd

The sellout crowd of 20,098 Saturday night was the Hawks' largest of the season. It was an atmosphere the Hawks have been anticipating for a while, what with the announcement two weeks ago that the game was a sellout.

"That's what our crowds need to look like all the time," Smith said. "We want to have that energy in here all the time. That's what all the playoff teams have. And we need to have it, too."