Boston Celtics 88 vs 107 Golden State Warriors summary: stats and highlights | NBA Finals Game 2
The NBA Finals heads east with the series tied up at 1-1 after the Golden State Warriors beat the Boston Celtics in Game 2 on Sunday night. Steph Curry led the way with 29 points in the 107-88 victory.
Curry and co. bounce back
Golden State came into Sunday night knowing they could not go to Boston with out a win under their belt after two home games at Chase Center. They used a big third quarter to pull ahead, much like in Game 1, but this time they closed it out in the fourth quarter.
Boston started off Game 2 like they ended Game 1, on fire. They hit their first five field goals as Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown both got involved early.
Curry may not have had a first quarter like the one he had in the series opener, when he went for 21 points hitting six three pointers. He did however get hot at the end of the quarter scoring seven points in the last couple minutes and giving the Warriors the lead for the first time since the game’s first basket.
Warriors defense shows up on Sunday
Both defenses locked down in the second quarter, as is expected in this series between the top two rated defensive teams in the regular season. The Warriors forced the Celtics into 11 first half turnovers, but Boston was able to hang in the game with some fantastic three point shooting. Through the first two quarters they were 11-19, but they would go cold after the break.
Steph and the Warriors came out of the halftime gate swinging, like they did in the opening game of the series. They got hot on the offensive end, but they did it with their defense. The Warriors held the Celtics to just 14 points in the third quarter as they let Curry pull the strings on the offensive end. He had 14 points in a third quarter that featured Golden State runs of 13-2 and 19-2 to stretch the lead to as many as 29.
With the game already out of hand, the Celtics rested their starters who are coming off of back-to-back seven game series.
Curry in Finals form in first two games
While Tatum had a better night from the field, going 8-19 with 28 points, there wasn’t in terms of help for Boston’s best scorer. Where four different Celtics had 20 or more points in Game 1, Tatum was the only one to reach that number on Sunday.
Curry was the only one to do so for the Warriors with his 29 points on 9-21 shooting. He got help from Jordan Poole who went off in the second half and had a total of 17 points. Looney had 12 of a perfect 6-6 shooting night and Wiggins had 11. Klay Thompson finished with 11, but struggled from the field for a second straight game.
The series now heads to Boston even at a game a piece. Game 3 will tip off on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET from TD Garden.
Steph Curry knows what it takes to win the NBA Finals, and so far he's playing at an MVP level.
Poole from long range to close out the third quarter on a 19-2 run to put Game 2 to rest.
When Steph is hitting shots like this one, all you have to do is lean back and enjoy the show. Even Boston had to sit back and admire Curry's ability to shoot the rock.
The Warriors went on two big runs in the third quarter that put the game out of reach.
Klay may not have had his night from the field, but that didn't stop him from shooting. He ended the night with 11 points on 4-19 shooting.
Curry and the Warriors got hot in the third quarter. Steph had 14 points in the quarter, as many as the entire Celtics team.
Draymond doing what Draymond does. Keeping the opposition on it's toes while doing all the little things that win games, and throwing in the occasional basket.
Only pure shooters lead a fast break, and think three first lay up later.
When he can shoot the lights out from three and take you off the dribble like this, how are you supposed to guard Steph Curry?
Gary Payton returned to action on Sunday night. He had been out since early in the Memphis series with a broken elbow.
With so many offensive weapons on the floor, the Celtics had to leave some one open and many times it was Mooney who got easy bucket after easy bucket.
We are headed to Boston level at 1-1 after two games in San Francisco.
Fitts banks in a three for the final score of the game.
Stuaskas in the corner for three!
Poole with another deep three ball! He's got 17 on the night.
Kornet with the slam.
Moody gets the slam on the baseline.
Neismith to the dish for the lay up.
Looney again down low with the slam! He's a perfect 6/6 from the field.
Hauser in the corner for three for his first points ever in the Finals.
Poole stays hot from downtown!
White with the slam off the Celtics steal and Steve Kerr will call a timeout with 5:37 to go in the fourth quarter.
Thompson to the line and he hits two of two.
White to the line and he hits two of two.
Pritchard this time off the dribble with back to back buckets.
Neismith to Pritchard in transition.
Thompson from the baseline with the fader.
Neismith off the bench and on the board.
The starters are on the bench for Boston, and I'm not sure if we will see much momre of them tonight.
Bjelica on the easy flush after the BOS turnover.
Poole down the lane, and he hits the floater.
Payton on the put back off the offensive rebound.
Curry had 14 in that third quarter, the same amount of points the Celtics scored.
Poole with a half court buzzer beater to end the third!!!!
Poole off the dribble for three!!! GS are on a 16-2 run in the third.
Looney wide open time and time again. This time it comes off of the Poole penetration.
Tatum back at the line and he hits one of two.
Tatum at the line where he goes one of two.
Curry with a trademark three that will be seen in highlight reels for years to come. He hit that from the Chase Center logo 35 feet away.
Curry off the screen and he drills the three ball! Warriors back on an 8-0 run.
Green to the line where he hits two of two.
Porter Jr. answers back with a three ball for the Warriors.
Tatum from the top of the key and he's got six threes on the night!
Williams in the corner for three! Big bucket for the Celtics there.
Udoka got T'd up and Curry goes to the line and hits the FT.
Curry to the line and he hits both.
Horford with the baseline cut. HE was huge in the fourth last game, Boston needs someone to step up and break up this run.
Wiggins to the line after the Williams foul. One of two FTs is good and the Warriors are on a 13-2 run.
Thompson in transition and the Warriors are rolling.
Curry cooking up the sauce!!!! He hits the step back three from straight on.
Finally it's Thompson for three!!! He started the game 1/8 but sinks that three to ignite the Chase Center crowd. 7-0 run Warriors and the Celtics need a timeout.
Looney off the inbound with the slam, and he's a perfect 4/4 from the field.
Curry weaving again and he finishes in traffic with the finger roll.
Brown on the lay up in tranisition for the first bucket of the second half.
We are back underway from the Chase Center. 24 minutes to go in Game 2.
Green taking it all on his own off the fake hand off. He's got 7 first half points.
Tatum on the step back, and he's 7/16 from the field tonight.
Curry got going at the end of the first quarter and ended the first half with 15.
Looney got some good looks early thanks to the Celtics defense eyeing Curry and Thompson on the perimeter.
Tatum looked intent on putting that tough Game 1, and he has done that through the first half. He's got 21.
Curry warmed up at the end of the first quarter. He finished the first half with 15. Wiggins has 11, but Thompson is cold at just 1/8 from the field.
Jayson Tatum leads all scorers with 21 points after the first half. Brown has 15 and White has 8. Boston is shooting well from behind the arc, but have turned the ball over 11 times.
We are headed to halftime from Chase Center with a two point game.
Wiggins fighting downlow for the offnesive rebound and he gives the Warriors the lead going into halftime.
Brown to the line after getting fouled on the three ball by Green. He hit two of three from the line.
No look dish from Curry to Wiggins who finishes off the play with a lay up.
Green to the line and he hits one of two.
Tatum on the turn around and he's over 20 points in the first half after scoring just 13 last game.
Green fakes the hand off and slashes to the basket for the easy finger roll.
White wide open again for three!!! He's got 8 points on the night off the bench.
Tatum has caught fire! He's got five three pointers on the night.
Wiggins from straight on and he bangs home a three ball!! 10-0 run for Golden State and the Celtics need a timeout with 4:52 to go in the second quarter.
Great movement in transition ends in a Payton layup. 7-0 run for the Warriors.
Curry with a pull up three ball and he's got 5 straight points to tie the game up.
Steph out of the timeout with a jumper from the mid range.
White wide open in the corner!!! He's got a quick five points in this quarter.
White off the dribble hits the jumper outside the lane.
Bjelica with back-to-back buckets! Is he going to be the role player to step up for GS like BOS go in Game 1.
White with the dump down to Williams for the jam.
Bjelica on the reverse, and he's getting some surprising minutes tonight.
Tatum steps into a three ball and he's got 16 already!
Brown and Tatum have 13 after 12 minutes.
Curry warmed up in the final minutes of the first half. He has 10 after 12 minutes, and Looney has been productive with 6.
Curry hits the mid range jumper and give the Warriors the first lead since it was 3-0.
Poole drains a three ball and it's raining threes in San Fran!!! Everyone hitting at the end of the quarter.
Tatum wih the step back three ball and he drains the three! He's in double digits after a slow shooting start.
Payton in the corner for three and that's his first bucket since getting hurt in the Grizzlies series.
Tatum for three! And if he gets hot that's trouble for the Warriors.
CUrry with a three ball!! Getting to the line might have just helped loosen the Warriors sharp shooter up.
Curry goes to the line and he hits one of two. GS have already missed four FTs.
Tatum at the line and he hits both FTs. He's got 7 points in the first quarter, but shooting only 2-7 from the field.
Timeout from Chase Center with 2:47 to go in the first quarter.
Looney wide open down low! So much attention on Steph and Klay that the Celtics are leaving Looney all alone.
Curry to the line and he hits both FTs. Not quite the same start he had to Game 1, he's got four points tonight.
Green to the line and he hits both after missing all three he took in Game 1.
Brown with another three ball!!! He's got 13 points already!
Brown hits the technical FT to get to double digits.
G. Williams down low after the dump off from Smart.
Thompson gets the friendly roll off the rim with the elbow jumper. That's his first FG in fie attempts.
Green with Horford on his back getting the lay up to go and the foul, but he missed the FT
Tatum with a step back three out of the inbound.
Curry, bobbing and weaving going up and under with the floater for his first points.
Looney left all alone down low and he gets the lay up to drop to help GS get some offensive momentum.
Brown absorbing the contact and dropping the runner in the lane and gets the foul. FT is good and Brown has nine aleady.
Tatum to the rack strong, but he comes up clutching that sore right shoulder of his.
Looney to the rack and that stops the 8-0 BOS run.
Brown with a quick trigger three off the dribble. He's got 6 of the BOS 8.
Smart down the lane and gets the lefty floater to go.
Brown answers for the Celtics with a three ball.
Wiggins at the top of the key for three for the first bucket of the game.
We are underway in Game 2 of the NBA Finals from the Chase Center.
Tonight's Odds for Game 2
According to Bet365.com the Warriors are 4.5 point favorites, and the Over/Under is set at 215. There is no doubt the Warriors have things to improve on tonight. They shot the ball incredibly well in Game 1, but defensively they have to make sure they keep Tatum and Jaylen Brown quiet, while keeping a watchful eye on guys like Horford and Tatum who won the game for Boston on Thursday. The Warriors can’t affront a loss tonight. They come out hot and lock the Celtics down with that second ranked defense and cover the 4.5 point spread.
It was Al Horford who led the charge for the Celtics in the first game. Will Jayson Tatum step up tonight for the Celtics?
Steve Kerr and the Warriors know how important this game is. That's not going to change the starting five for tonight though. He is going with his old faithful five with Wiggins and Looney supporting the Big Three.
Road teams success
The good news for the Boston Celtics tonight is recent history seems to favor the road team. The two regular season matchups between these two teams were won by the away team. Golden State won 111-107 in Boston back in December when the Celtics were still struggling with their early season blues. Bosotn avenged the loss with a 110-88 win on the road just before the playoffs began. Nothing changed in the first game between these two in the NBA Finals. Boston took Game 1, and will be looking to take Game 2 tonight.
Warriors at home vs. Boston on the road
Golden States Game 1 loss at the Chase Center was the first home loss they have suffered all postseason. In the first three rounds, they rolled through the Nuggets in three home games to close out the series in five games like they did against the Mavs in the Western Conference Finals. They won their third home game against the Grizzlies to close out the series in Game 6 at Chase Center. The Celtics have been fantastic on the road during the Playoffs. With the win on Thursday, they improved to 8-2 away from TD Garden.
Curry and Green riff?
Steph Curry was vocal about the Warriors’ inability to close out Game 1 after going into the fourth quarter with a 12 point lead. “Scoring points isn’t enough. You have to defend.” In a question that wasn’t directed at Curry, Draymond Green said “As a leader, one thing I hate is leaders who when everything is good, it’s all up… And when stuff hits the fan, it’s everybody else fault. For me, I understand that ultimately, if I play well, we win. If I don’t, we still can, but if I do, we win.” While not specifically a shot at Curry, some are taking the Warriors big man’s words as a message to Curry.
Tatum goes cold
On Thursday, the Celtics showed they can win even if the captain of the ship has on off night. Jayson Tatum was held to just 12 points on 3-17 shooting in Game 1, but had an impact on the defensive end and dished out 13 assists. Tatum hasn’t blown up in a game since Game 6 against the Bucks when he went for 46 points in the 108-85 win. Luckily for the Celtics, they haven’t needed their top scorer to be the first and only option on the offensive end.
Steph getting his shot ready for Game 2. What ever he did before Game 1, he should do again. He had 36 points and 21 in the first quarter.
Kerr waiting for a bounce back
The Warriors head coach Steve Kerr realizes losing Game 1 hurts, and doing it the way they did in the fourth quarter hurts even more. "Obviously everybody is down," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "You want to go out and win the first one. We had every opportunity, 12-point lead going into the fourth. Guys are bummed, as you would expect. But it's a seven-game series for a reason."
Horford speaks after debut
Al Horford waited for fifteen seasons to get to the NBA Finals, and made sure he made up for lost time with his 26 point performance. He talked about cherishing this long awaited trip to the Finals after the win. “Just grateful for this opportunity," Horford said. "It's just going out there and playing basketball at the end of the day. That's just what it is. ... Just excited to be able to share this stage with these group of guys."
The Celtics are up 1-0 and walking into the Chase Center with the road drip strong.
You wouldn't be able to tell from Klay Thompson's arrival that the Warriors are down 1-0 in the NBA Finals. Golden State no what the Finals are all about, they won't be panicking despite opening the series with the loss.
Game 1 recap
Golden State blew a 12 point fourth quarter lead after taking control of the series opener right after halftime. Despite Steph Curry’s electric, 21 point first quarter the Celtics were hanging tight. Boston went into halftime with a lead thanks to some fantastic play from the the Celtic role players. Al Horford and Derrick White played huge parts in the Game 1 win. Horford led the Celtics with 26 points and a career high six threes and was instrumental in the 40-16 fourth quarter that gave Boston the first win in the Finals.
We are live from the Chase Center
Hello everyone and welcome to San Francisco where the Golden State Warriors will be desperate to even the series up at 1-1 after letting a late lead slip in the final quarter of Game 1. Boston has already taken the first step towards lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy with the win on Thursday. Another road win before heading back to the TD Garden would be worth it’s weight in gold, but they know it’s not going to be easy against the three time champs in Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
Game 2 of the NBA Finals
The Boston Celtics come into tonight’s Game 2 with a 1-0 series lead over the Golden State Warriors after a dramatic comeback in the fourth quarter of the opening game of the NBA Finals. AS English will be with you all night, providing live coverage, stats, scores and highlights tonight from the Chase Center.
Game 1 recap
Golden State blew a 12 point fourth quarter lead after taking control of the series opener right after halftime. Despite Steph Curry’s electric, 21 point first quarter the Celtics were hanging tight. Boston went into halftime with a lead thanks to some fantastic play from the the Celtic role players. Al Horford and Derrick White played huge parts in the Game 1 win. Horford led the Celtics with 26 points and a career high six threes and was instrumental in the 40-16 fourth quarter that gave Boston the first win in the Finals.
We are live from San Francisco
Hello everyone and welcome to San Francisco where the Golden State Warriors will be desperate to even the series up at 1-1 after letting a late lead slip in the final quarter of Game 1. Boston has already taken the first step towards lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy with the win on Thursday. Another road win before heading back to the TD Garden would be worth it’s weight in gold, but they know it’s not going to be easy against the three time champs in Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
NBA Finals Game 2
The Boston Celtics come into tonight’s Game 2 with a 1-0 series lead over the Golden State Warriors after a dramatic comeback in the fourth quarter of the opening game of the NBA Finals. AS English will be with you all night, providing live coverage, stats, scores and highlights tonight from the Chase Center.