Three wins away: C’s capture Game 1

NBA. If these NBA Finals are supposed to serve as Kobe Bryant’s stamp on history, no one bothered to tell Paul Pierce.

The Celtics’ captain pulled a page out of Larry Bird’s gospel Thursday night and carried the C’s to a 98-88 victory over the Lakers in Game 1 of the Finals at the Garden. Game 2 is back in Boston on Sunday night.

Pierce scored 22 points, including 19 in the second half, when he was playing on one leg. Kevin Garnett added 24 points and 13 rebounds, and Ray Allen had 19 points, eight boards and five assists.

Pierce stole the show in the third, hitting a lay-up before accomplishing a rare feat. Contrary to the Bennett Salvatore School of Officiating, Pierce can indeed knock down 3-pointers while drawing a defensive foul, and his splash off the glass and ensuing free throw put the Celtics ahead, 52-51.

Following a collision with Kendrick Perkins a couple minutes later, though, Pierce was carried off the court with what appeared to be a devastating right knee injury. But Pierce stole a page from Bird, returned to the game and scored 13 points in the third to give the Celtics a 77-73 lead after three.

Garnett put the finishing touch on the game, ending a streak of nine straight misses by throwing down a hard dunk to put the C’s up, 94-86.

After the teams went back and forth early in the first, Allen and the Celtics created some space. Allen hit a lay-up and a 3-pointer on consecutive possessions, and Rajon Rondo (15 points) hit a pair of free throws to cap a 7-0 run that gave the Celtics a 21-14 lead.

The Lakers responded by scoring seven straight and tied the score at 21-21 when Bryant (24 points) knocked down a short fade-away jumper. Bryant was just 2-of-8 from the floor in the quarter, and P.J. Brown’s mini hook shot put the C’s ahead, 23-21 after one.

Garnett took over in the second quarter, scoring eight straight points for the Celtics as they built a 40-35 lead, but the Lakers ended the quarter on a 16-6 run to take a 51-46 advantage into the break.