Rajon Rondo hit a running jumper in the lane that gave the Celtics a 71-59 lead in the third quarter. It marked a 26-point turnaround in which the Celtics outscored the Cavs 42-16 over a span of 14:27 between the second and third quarters.
NBA. Jekyll was at the Garden last night. Once again, the Celtics are hoping Hyde doesn’t follow them on the road to Cleveland tomorrow.
The Celtics maintained their playoff excellence at home, dispatching the Cavaliers, 96-89, in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals and seizing a 3-2 series lead. The C’s will try to advance to the conference championship and close out the Cavs in Game 6 tomorrow, but to do so, they must escape the demons that have haunted them throughout the playoffs away from the Garden.
Kevin Garnett had 26 points and 16 rebounds for the Celtics, who are 7-0 at home and 0-5 on the road in the postseason. Paul Pierce scored 29 points, including eight free throws in the final 1:23.
After the Celtics tried to play catch-up through the entire first half, they finally seized momentum early in the third quarter. Rajon Rondo (20 points and 13 assists) intercepted a pass from LeBron James and went coast to coast for a lay-up that gave the C’s a 47-46 advantage, their first lead of the game.
On the heels of a couple shaky nights in Cleveland, the Celtics found their killer instinct with a 13-2 run that included a loud baseline dunk from Pierce, and the C’s went on to build a 71-59 lead.
Despite being one of the best closers in the game, James only scored 12 of his 35 points in the second half, and the Cavs’ late rally wasn’t enough.
The first half was something of a nightmare for the Celtics, who hovered around 30 percent from the field before going on a late run to chip away at an early double-digit deficit.
The Cavs built an 18-9 lead nine minutes into the game. After the Celtics countered with a 9-3 run, the Cavs delivered another hard blow, ripping off a 14-4 spurt as they outhustled the C’s to loose balls and offensive rebounds.
But when James knocked down a 23-foot jumper with 3:49 remaining in the second quarter, Cleveland went stagnant. Rondo hit back-to-back 3-pointers, and Pierce’s lay-in before the break capped off a 14-3 run that drew the Celtics to within 46-43.