NBA Finals: Celtics beat back Warriors in Game 3

BOSTON –

All through the postseason, the Boston Celtics had performed their greatest basketball away from residence.

Not anymore.

Jaylen Brown scored 27 factors, Jayson Tatum added 26 and the Celtics rode the power of a raucous TD Backyard crowd to beat again one other third-quarter onslaught by Golden State in a 116-100 victory Wednesday night time that gave them a 2-1 lead within the NBA Finals.

Marcus Good added 24 factors and helped gasoline a defensive effort that held the Warriors to 11 factors within the fourth quarter — third-fewest in a finals recreation within the shot clock period.

“Recreation 2, they introduced the warmth to us,” Good mentioned. “For us, that left a foul style in our mouth as a result of what we hold our hat on is effort on the defensive finish and being a bodily crew. It undoubtedly woke us up a bit bit.”

Tatum mentioned the very fact the Celtics didn’t hold their heads after the Warriors’ third-quarter flourish is one thing they did not at all times do within the common season.

“I believe that’s after we are at our greatest after we reply to powerful conditions. We reply to groups occurring runs and issues like that,” he mentioned. “I believe we did that a number of occasions tonight.”

Boston improved to 6-4 at residence, in comparison with 8-3 on the highway this postseason. The Celtics have not misplaced two straight video games for the reason that finish of March.

Stephen Curry led Golden State with 31 factors and 6 3-pointers. He had 15 factors in a 33-25 third quarter by the Warriors however was harm late within the fourth after Al Horford rolled into his leg on a free ball. Curry mentioned it was just like a play in the course of the common season wherein Good dove into Curry’s legs whereas chasing a free ball however “not as unhealthy.”

“I obtained caught — clearly in some ache, however I’ll be all proper,” Curry mentioned. “See the way it feels tomorrow and prepare for Friday.”

Klay Thompson broke out of a finals stoop and completed with 25 factors and 5 3s. However the Warriors’ capturing could not save them on an evening the extra athletic Celtics outmuscled them for a 47-31 rebounding benefit.

“Whenever you enable a crew to get comfy, particularly of their residence — in entrance the house crowd, then it’s powerful,” Warriors ahead Draymond Inexperienced mentioned.

Robert Williams III, who has been working his method again from knee surgical procedure, completed with eight factors, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks.

“We talked about it fairly a bit, our group being resilient and having the ability to struggle by way of quite a lot of issues and at occasions when it’s most wanted having the ability to lock down on defence,” Celtics coach Ime Udoka mentioned. “We did within the fourth quarter,”

Recreation 4 is Friday in Boston.

Regardless of Curry’s noticeable limp after the play with Horford, Warriors coach Steve Kerr mentioned it was not why he pulled him from the sport within the closing minutes.

“The harm didn’t pressure him out of the sport, however I took him out down 14 with two minutes left as a result of we weren’t going to catch up,” Kerr mentioned.

The earlier 39 occasions groups have break up the primary two video games of the finals, the winner of Recreation 3 went on to win the sequence 82% of the time.

Feeding off the power of a Backyard crowd that jeered Inexperienced all through his depressing night time within the first NBA Finals recreation in Boston since 2010, the Celtics began quick and led by as many as 18 factors within the first half.

Coming off a Recreation 2 loss wherein Boston turned the ball over 19 occasions, the Celtics’ ball motion was a lot crisper within the half court docket, which led to open perimeter pictures, beneficial 1-on-1 matchups and driving lanes..

It left the Warriors scrambling at occasions, which contributed to 3 foul calls on Curry within the opening 24 minutes.

However in addition to Boston performed, it had its early lead erased within the third quarter by a Warriors seven-point possession that included a four-point play by Curry when he drew a flagrant 1 foul on Horford and 3-pointer by Otto Porter Jr to place Golden State in entrance 83-82.

Boston recovered to take a 93-89 edge into the fourth, then outscored Golden State 23-11 within the quarter.

The Celtics led 56-39 earlier than an 8-0 spurt in simply 37 seconds by the Warriors trimmed the result in 56-49 on a layup by Curry with 3:32 left in half. Boston flurried on the finish of the half to take a 68-56 lead into halftime.

TIP-INS

Warriors: Shot 8 of 23 within the first interval. … Had been outscored 52-26 within the paint.

Celtics: Shot 57% within the first half (27 of 47. Together with 8 of 18 from 3. … With two 3-pointers by Brown within the first quarter, he and Tatum turned the primary pair of teammates in Celtics historical past to every make 50 3-pointers in a single postseason.

SHOVING MATCH

Inexperienced was concerned in tussles with Brown and Grant Williams in Recreation 2 – one which led to a technical foul name on Inexperienced.

He had one other transient run-in with Williams within the second quarter Wednesday when Williams knocked Inexperienced to the bottom at midcourt.

A foul was referred to as on Williams, however he and Inexperienced had a brief face-off earlier than being rapidly separated by officers.

In third quarter, Inexperienced wound up on the bottom combating for a free ball with Brown. This time Inexperienced was referred to as for the foul.

FAST START

The Celtics hit three of their first 4 pictures and scored 10 straight factors to leap out to 10-2 lead.

Boston’s lead grew to 18-9 when a quick break ended with Curry selecting up his second foul making an attempt to contest Good’s layup with 5:44 left within the quarter.

Curry stayed within the recreation and Golden State switched to zone, but it surely did little to sluggish Boston, which widened its benefit as excessive as 15 factors. The Celtics took a 33-22 lead into the second interval.