NEW YORK – It was almost unfair. There’s Kevin Garnett at forward, Ray Allen at guard, and Paul Pierce on the wing. So, it seemed highly unlikely that Kendrick Perkins would emerge as the central figure.

But, on a day that celebrated the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the slain civil right’s leader, it was Perkins who stood tallest among his Celtic teammates. The 6’10” center, an insignificant player for much of his five NBA seasons- tallied a career-high 24 points, and added eight rebounds as Boston –the league’s best team- smoked the Knicks, 109-93, on Monday afternoon at the Garden.

Not that Garnett, Allen and Pierce were entirely invisible. KG and Allen, acquired during the off-season to support Pierce, the lifelong Celtic, finished with 20 and 17 points respectively. Pierce was limited to 10, but his beef with Quentin Richardson with Boston ahead by 17 in the waning minutes of the third quarter -which created double technical fouls and subsequent ejections for each player- reminded observers of one thing. That, regardless of the sport, the New York-Boston rivalry is as hot as ever.

Zach Randolph led the Knicks with 24 points, 15 boards and four steals. Jamal Crawford added 22, and a team-high five assists. Eddy Curry, after a passive first half, finished with 19 –including 11 of 13 from the free throw line. Nate Robinson, whose PT was limited in the opening 24 minutes, due to three fouls, scored 11 of his 15 in the second half.

Crawford, averaging 24 points over his last eight games, while hitting 25-of-57 from distance [43.95], hit the team’s only trey in 14 attempts.

“We deserved the technicals,” an irate Doc Rivers said afterward. “We deserved the ejection. We deserved everything we got. It was all of us running our mouths. The scoreboard will talk; we don’t need to run our mouths.”

New York, which has now won 16 of 22 times since the holiday was first observed in 1986, could not contest Perkins, who already had 15 points as the Celtics rolled to a 21-10 margin less than seven minutes into the game.

Then, what was just a three-point advantage with 3:04 remaining in the half, quickly zoomed to a 59-45 bulge. Rajon Rondo, who had 11 first-half points, sparked the decisive surge with seven points, two steals and one assist. The 22-year old guard, entrusted with running the offense, finished with 14 points, on five-of-nine shooting, with four steals and two assists.

Perkins, who averages 6.8 points, 5.7 rebounds in fewer than 25 minutes of playing time, had already established his career-high by intermission. He hit 8-of-10 from the field, while adding five boards, as he personally outscored his famed teammates, 22-16. His previous best was established on November 23, when he tallied 21 points, along with a season-high nine boards against the Lakers.

Over the first 38 games, the ‘Big Three” had combined for 58 points, 20 rebounds, 11 assists, four steals and two blocks per game. Pierce, their high scorer with 21 points per game, also contributes six rebounds and five assists. Garnett, their emotional leader, hits for 19 points and 10 rebounds, with four assists. Allen, a presence along the perimeter, averages 18 points, four boards and three assists.

Boston, 15-3 on the road, seemingly had the game in hand, as their lead ballooned to 19 when Rondo converted a free throw with five minutes remaining in the third. The game, already chippy, further escalated when Pierce and Richardson began jawing at each other at the 3:07 mark. Seventy seconds later, they were bounced from the game; Richardson departed, with the hope that Pierce would accept his verbal challenge to meet in the walkway.

Neither player was available during the post-game interview.

Clearly, some of this bad blood stemmed from Boston’s 45-point overwhelming victory on November 29, when Richardson’s “guaranteed victory” at the TD Banknorth Garden was posted inside the Celtic locker room.

“Rivalries are good,” added Rivers, who played for New York between 1992-95. “It is good to have heated contests, but we still must have composure. I didn’t like our team in the second half. The game is a competition; it is never a show. We won the game, but we got away with it. We don’t want to be lucky. We want to be good.”

They are still the toast of the East and, certainly, good enough to turn away the Knicks, which could not get any closer than seven points over the final two quarters.

The Celts, victors in 12 of the past 15 meetings with New York, have won five straight games at MSG. They are 11-2 here since the start of the 2001-02 season.

The day began with questions. Which is how it usually begins. Except that, after Isiah Thomas was finished with the twenty-odd members who attended this conference, he was really just beginning. He walked toward the door, turned and got in a parting shot.

“And not one question about playing on Martin Luther King’s birthday?”

There are just so many minutes to a press conference, and other questions seemed more pertinent. Like, whether there were any lessons learned from when the Knicks last played the Celtics in November. That contest, which evolved into an abomination for the ages –in addition be being the most embarrassing telecast that has played on TNT in its two-decade history. There was a question about the standings, and how Thomas felt about entering this game a mere five games out of seventh place in the conference.

It was all standard fare. His answers were just enough to satisfy the masses. But, not nearly enough to create a stir. Even one question, which referred to Reggie Miller’s descriptive words for the losers following that blowout, was brushed away. The 59 points, attained only when Robinson hit a desperation 37’ shot at the buzzer, marked New York’s second-lowest offensive performance during the shot-clock era.

But, now that the Knicks had won four of five, including two of three on their recent road trip –they had only won two of their first 15 away from MSG-, Thomas was feeling his oats. And, while it is true that New York [13-28] is ranked 14th of 15 conference teams, it is also true that they are well within reach of a post-season appearance.

Still, it is far too soon to print playoff tickets. After all, the Knicks were playing the first-place Celtics on this afternoon and, already, the margin between the two teams is a staggering 20 games, the most in any of the six decisions.