I confess. I was one of the many who predicted a double-digit loss for the Celtics. The Heat had too much to prove… or so I thought.
Let's start with the obvious, Ray Allen was brilliant – 35 points, 13-23 FG, 7-9 3FG. Dwyane Wade was awful – 8 points, 2-12 FG, 6 TOs.
The Celtics led this game from start to finish. They took a 15 point lead into the half thanks to 60+% shooting. Paul Pierce scored 11 of his 25 in the 2nd quarter. He repeatedly torched Jerry Stackhouse.
The offense was crisp. The ball movement was spectacular. Rajon Rondo (8 points, 16 assists, 2 steals) was the reason.
The Cs were making all the hustle plays. KG (16 points, 13 rebounds) and Glen Davis (6 points, 9 rebounds) both made spectacular tip-ins with their left hands.
Nate Robinson was clutch at the start of the 4th quarter. With the Cs clinging to a 10 point lead, Nate had 6 points and 2 assists to keep Miami at bay.
LeBron James (35 points, 10 rebounds, 9 assists) single-handedly led the Heat comeback. He got a lot of help from… the referees (17 – 22 FTs). James lowers his head, bulls his way into the lane and gets all the calls.
Udonis Haslem (21 points, 9-10 FG 10 rebounds) was money. Chris Bosh should cut him a check.
The final few minutes of the game were strange. The Celtics made some mental mistakes, taking shots instead of running clock. Ray Allen had a dunk blocked (I swear that was a goaltend). And down 7 with 1 minute left, Lebron had an open 3 and hit the side of the backboard.
Shaquille O'Neal (5 points, 7 rebounds) was whistled for a BS flagrant 1 foul on LeBron in the 3rd quarter. Was it a hard foul? Yes. But the foul didn't even knock LeBron off his feet.
After the jump, Rondo's spectacular dunk over Chris Bosh.
Thanks to @jose3030 for the GIFs.
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