Two down, two to go: C’s hold on for victory

NBA. The Paul Pierce coronation continues, and the Celtics are two wins away from winning the NBA Finals.

Playing with a sprained right knee, Pierce scored 28 points and led the C’s to a 108-102 win over the Lakers in Game 2 of the Finals last night at the Garden. The Celtics will take their 2-0 series lead to the Staples Center tomorrow night for Game 3.

The Lakers capitalized off a tough first-quarter stretch for Kevin Garnett (17 points, 14 rebounds) to go on a 7-0 run and build a 15-8 lead. In a span of a few possessions, Garnett was overpowered by both Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, whistled for an offensive foul and hit with a technical for arguing the call. But Garnett responded with four quick points during a 9-2 run, capped off by a Ray Allen 3-pointer from the left corner, to tie the score at 17.

After Jordan Farmar hit a 3 to give the Lakers a 22-20 advantage after one, the Celtics started the second quarter on a 10-0 spurt to grab a 30-22 lead. The Lakers drew to 41-37, but Pierce and Allen hit back-to-back 3-pointers to extend the lead to 47-37.

And then the Lakers got Rondo’d. Rajon Rondo (16 assists) ran from Cambridge to block a Vladimir Radmanovic 3-pointer, and Rondo finished the play by streaking down court, receiving a long pass from Garnett and throwing down a hard, one-handed dunk to give the Celtics a 53-42 lead.

A quick start to the third quarter gave the Celtics a 16-point lead, but Bryant and Gasol pulled the Lakers within 68-59. Like the C’s have done so many times before, though, they made a run following a timeout. Pierce started a 13-0 burst with a jumper and a lay-up, Leon Powe (21 points) capped it with a pair of dunks and the Celtics took an 83-61 lead after three.

The Lakers washed away their early struggles with a parade of fourth-quarter 3-pointers but Kobe Bryant (30 points) couldn’t pull them out of their 24-point hole.