Celtics protect home from Warriors, 94-86

The Celtics (31-27) returned home in style Friday night, beating the Golden State Warriors (33-26), 94-86. Boston’s 50-46 halftime lead was quickly erased in the opening minutes of the 3rd quarter, but the Celtics pulled away later that quarter to lead by seven going into the fourth. They never looked back, as Paul Pierce led the way for Boston with 26 points, eight rebounds, and four assists, while Jeff Green added 18 points, 14 of which came in the second half.

What they’ll be saying: The hype going into this one centered on the matchup between Celtics defensive ace Avery Bradley and Warriors sharpshooter Stephen Curry. Curry was fresh off a 54-point performance at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night, but it was clear early on that he wouldn’t touch that number Friday night. Curry still ended up with a respectable 25 points, but it came on 6-of-22 shooting from the field, including 3-of-11 from 3-point range. Curry failed to score on Bradley in the first quarter, and it wasn’t until midway through the second quarter that Curry got to the line at the expense of Bradley, hitting both free throws.

In fact, that was just the start of Bradley’s fouling. He picked up his fifth foul early on in the third quarter (though you could argue some were a little iffy), all but ending the Bradley-Curry matchup. Bradley’s exit was the Warriors’ shot at getting Curry hot, but it didn’t happen, as Courtney Lee and Jeff Green filled in. The road hasn’t been kind to the Warriors of late, as they drop their eighth road game in their last nine. Boston, on the other hand improves to 9-0 at home since Rajon Rondo’s injury.