Once the balanced list of early players in the Boston NBA Finals found a long-term rhythm, the determined Celtics offered a memorable comeback and outscored Stephen Curry and the old Golden State guard.
Jaylen Brown fueled the late charge and scored 24 points, Al Horford made six triples and the Celtics made the fourth most unbalanced quarter in NBA Finals history to a 120-108 victory over the Warriors. in the first game on Thursday night.
Horford finished with 26 points and the Celtics beat the Warriors 40-16 in the final 12 minutes after losing 15 points at the end of the third quarter. The 15-year-old, who turns 36 on Friday, played in 141 previous postseason games, most before playing in the NBA Finals.
“I felt like the guys were finding me time and time again. Derrick White did a few hard blows there too,” Horford said. “I was just getting the looks, knocking them down. That’s it.”
Boston made its first seven long-range attempts in the fourth and finished with 9 of 12 beyond the arc during the period, as almost everyone got involved in the three-point burst. Jayson Tatum was the only regular for the Celtics to fight offensively, finishing 3 of 17, though he made 13 assists.
Curry scored 34 points on his return to the big NBA stage for the first time in three years, but the Warriors couldn’t keep up the momentum from a 38-point third quarter that put them ahead 92- 80 in the last 12 minutes.
The second game is on Sunday night at the Chase Center.
At Horford he finished with 26 points and the Celtics outscored the Warriors 40-16 in the final 12 minutes.
“It’s an incredible feeling to just be here and compete at this level against such a dynamic franchise over the last two years,” said Boston baseman Payton Pritchard. “I think we’re all looking forward to the challenge of going through the series and trying to do it.”
According to Sportradar, the Celtics were the first team to beat a final game with 10 points or more after three quarters and win by 10 or more.
Derrick White’s triple over Curry with 5:40 from the end tied the game at 103, then Horford hit from the depths next time down as the Celtics took their first lead from the break.
“They kept their distance and fired late,” Draymond Green of Golden State said.
Boston is looking to capture its 18th record title, which will put the Celtics ahead of the Lakers, and is now just three wins away.
Brown, who starred in the upcoming California during a college season, made consecutive baskets that tied the game at 47 with 5:03 from the end of the break and the Celtics led 56-54 at the break. Golden State then used a drive boost characteristic of the third quarter, pouring 38 points to build a big lead.
Brown then scored five quick points early in the quarter and assisted on an alley-oop mate to Robert Williams III as the Celtics retreated 92-87 with 9:35 of the end. Brown’s 3 at 8:22 made it 94-92 before Klay Thompson responded with a three.
Andrew Wiggins scored 20 points in his debut in the final and Green caught 11 rebounds before committing a foul with 48.3 seconds left. Thompson contributed 15 points when the Warriors started their sixth final in eight years after making five straight trips between 2015-19 and winning three championships.
They will have to win this one behind after being 21-2 in their previous 1 games with Steve Kerr.
“It simply came to our notice then. Obviously you get into game 2 with more of a sense of despair. All of that is part of these things. We’ve been in that position before, “Kerr said.” Boston made a brilliant quarter. They came in and won. “
Curry scored 21 soft points in the opening period on 7-of-8 shots, including 6 of 8 made three-pointers, missing a mid-pitch throw to the bell. And Boston struggled to keep up with the fast movement of the ball and the Warriors pitchers at every point on the ground.
Otto Porter Jr came back from a two-game absence to score 12 points from the bench for the well-rested Warriors. Golden State finished its Western Conference Finals in the fifth game against Dallas a week earlier at home, while Boston pushed to the limit with a seventh-game win in Miami last Sunday.
Golden State fell to 9-1 this postseason at home, where an exhausted crowd in the yellow jerseys of the final chanted “MVP!” by Curry at every opportunity.
Marcus Smart scored 18 points with four triples for Boston. The Celtics star received criticism from Kerr for what the Golden State coach called “a dangerous play” by throwing himself at Curry’s left foot on March 16 in a 110-88 Boston defeat that left aside the 2021 scoring champion for a month before his return to the first game of the first round facing Denver.
Now begins the hard work for a Warriors team that was the worst in the league 15-50 during the 2019-20 season shortened by the pandemic two years ago and lost to Memphis in the play-in game last year passed before eliminating the Grizzlies in the first round. this season.