For as bad as Ray blew it at the end – coughing the ball up on an inbounds pass with 20 seconds left – you have to hand it to the Spurs' Matt Bonner (23 pts, 8 reb). The dude killed us today. However, the Celtics were able to overcome, cough, Bonner's greatness, and still had a chance to win this game.
KG was going to be our hero. He nailed a couple of jumpers and had a key steal in the final few minutes. With the Celtics up 93-92 and just 30 seconds left on the clock, Garnett hoisted one of his patented 17 foot jumpers. Unfortunately, this one rimmed out. And then Roger Mason drained a 3 that silenced John, myself and the other 18,000 people at the Garden.
But there was 20 seconds left, plenty of time for one of the Big 3 to win this. Ray went to make an inbound pass and somehow the ball ended up in Ginobli's hands. It looked like the ball slipped out of Ray's hands as he tried to pull it back. All the drama, all the buildup for this final possession was over in a blink of an eye. For some reason – there was never a reply of this crucial play on the Garden jumbotron. I guess the video crew was punching the clock. Game over.
Other observations from Section 20:
- Cedric Maxwell (working the broadcast from 5 feet in front of us) needs a bigger chair.
- Granted I made a few beer runs, but I remember seeing the Celtics dancers just twice. Are they paid by the routine?
- The fried clams and fries is a decent meal for $9.
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