Celtics beat Warriors 116-100, take 2-1 lead in NBA Finals

BOSTON (AP) — Jaylen Brown scored 27 factors, Jayson Tatum added 26 and the Boston Celtics beat again one other third-quarter onslaught by the Golden State Warriors in a 116-100 victory Wednesday evening that gave them a 2-1 lead in the NBA Finals.

Marcus Smart added 24 factors and helped lead a defensive effort that held the Warriors to 11 factors in the fourth quarter,

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 damage late in the fourth after Al Horford rolled into his leg on a free ball. It was much like a play throughout the common season in which Smart dove into Curry’s legs whereas chasing a free ball.

Klay Thompson broke out of a finals stoop and completed with 25 factors and 5 3s. But the Warriors’ taking pictures couldn’t save them on an evening the extra athletic Celtics outmuscled them for a 47-31 rebounding benefit,

Game 4 is Friday in Boston.

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

Feeding off the power of a TD Garden crowd that jeered Draymond Green all through his depressing evening in the primary NBA Finals recreation in Boston since 2010, the Celtics began quick and led by as many as 18 factors in the primary half.

Coming off a Game 2 loss in which Boston turned the ball over 19 instances, the Celtics’ ball motion was a lot crisper in the half courtroom, which led to open perimeter pictures, favorable 1-on-1 matchups and driving lanes.

It left the Warriors scrambling at instances, which contributed to a few foul calls on Curry in the opening 24 minutes.

But in addition to Boston performed, it had its early lead erased in 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. The Celtics acquired the lead again as much as 102-91 in the fourth and outscored Golden State 23-11 in the quarter.

The Celtics led 56-39 earlier than an 8-0 spurt in simply 37 seconds by the Warriors trimmed the lead to 56-49 on a layup by Curry with 3:32 left in half. The run included a pair of missed free throws by Boston, together with a missed layup and turnover.

Boston flurried on the finish of the half to take a 68-56 lead into halftime.

TIP-INS

Warriors: Shot 8 of 23 in the primary interval. … Were outscored 52-26 in the paint.

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

SHOVING MATCH

Green was concerned in tussles with Brown and Grant Williams in Game 2 – one which ended in a technical foul name on Green.

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

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

In third quarter, Green wound up on the bottom preventing for a free ball with Brown. This time Green 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 choosing up his second foul attempting to contest Smart’s layup with 5:44 left in the quarter.

Curry stayed in the sport and Golden State switched to zone, nevertheless it did little to gradual Boston, which widened its benefit as excessive as 15 factors. The Celtics took a 33-22 lead into the second interval.

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