Golden State Warriors 100 vs 116 Boston Celtics summary: halftime, stats and highlights | NBA Finals Game 3
The Celtics defense held strong in the final quarter to give Boston a 2-1 lead over the Golden State Warriors. Jaylen Brown led the way with 27 points in the 116-100 Game 3 victory.
Finals basketball back in Boston
The Celtics returned to the TD Garden with series all square at 1-1 knowing that their home performances have been underwhelming over the last two series. It was the first Finals game in Boston in over a decade and the Celtics did not disappoint their home fans.
Jaylen Brown got the Garden rocking early on, catching fire from the tip off. He had 17 points on 6-9 shooing in the first quarter to get the Celtics off to a red hot start. The home side stretched to the lead to as many as 13 in the first ten minutes of the game and saw Steph Curry go to the bench with two early fouls.
For the first two games Steph Curry was left all alone to carry the brunt of the scoring duties with Klay Thompson struggling from the field. On Wednesday night Thompson made up for lost time. He scored 15 of his 25 points in the first half help keep the Warriors within striking distance despite Golden State being dominated on the boards.
Boston bullied Warriors on boards
Boston’s size advantage and physicality was on display from the very beginning of the game as Robert Williams and Al Horford controlled the paint for much of the night. The Celtics were either getting great looks close to the basket or creating second chance opportunities by hitting the offensive glass. The Warriors were getting manhandled at halftime 31-16 in the rebounding battle, which helped the Celtics go into the break with a 12 point lead.
The Warriors, and Steph Curry, stormed back in the third quarter as we have seen them do so often in this series and throughout the golden era with their star trio. Curry scored 15 points in the third quarter as the Warriors briefly took the lead thanks to a seven point possession that included an Al Horford flagrant foul on a made Curry three pointer. The 83-82 lead was the Warriors first lead since starting the game 2-0, and it would be their last lead of the game.
Defense as is so often has in this series, decided the game for the Celtics in the fourth quarter. Williams took over on the defensive end, as Tatum put in the work scoring the rock in crucial moments of the game. Curry, who ended the game with 31 points, and the Warriors were held to 11 points in the fourth quarter as Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart carried the Celtics to the Game 3 win.
Brown had 27 and 9 rebounds, while Tatum ended the night with 26 and 9 assists and Smart had 24, 7 and 5 assists to give the Boston fans their first Finals win at home since 2010.
Game 3 win a good omen for C's?
History shows that the winner of Game 3 in an NBA Finals that is 1-1 after to games becomes the heavy favorite to win the series. This is the fortieth series to go to Game 3 at 1-1, in the preivous 39, the winner of Game 3 has won the championship 32 times.
The Warriors will try to ignore that fact and get back on track Friday night in Game 4 from TD Garden will tip off at 9 p.m. ET
Al Horford knew what was at stake coming into the game, and said the Celitcs responded when they needed to.
Horford to Wiliams for the exclamation point and to send the TD Garden fans home with a bang.
The Celitics defense is was won them the game on Wednesday night. They held the Warriors to just 11 points in the fourth quarter.
Robert Wiliams, who was a question coming into Game 3, was massive in the paint on both sides of the court for the Celtcs. He had 8 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks.
When shots like this go in you just have to feel like it's your night
The Celitcs exploited the Tatum Curry matchup for much of the game, much like the Warriors and Andrew Wiggins did to Luke Doncic
Marcus Smart did a little of everything on Wednesday. He ended the game with 24, 7 and 5 assists.
Al Horford will not win Finals MVP if the Celtics win it all, but he will be a huge part of them winning it all if the C's beat the Warriors in the Finals.
Tatum took a little while to get his scoring going, but dished out 9 assists and still reached 26 points.
The Celtics went to Jaylen Brown early and often. He had 17 first quarter points to set the tone in Game 3.
Brown to the line and he hits two of two before getting swapped out to a standing ovation from the TD Garden crowd.
Smart driving on Curry this time and he gets it to go off the glass. Smart has 24!
Wiggins with a steal and slam.
Horford up top to Williams on the alley oop and that might just be the nail in the coffin.
Green just fouled out after a mad scarmble.
Poole on the inbound with the quick catch and shoot under the basket.
Tatum finds Smart in the corner for three!!!
Timeout Warriors with 5:51 to go in the fourth.
Tatum driving on Curry again! He is taking advantage of that match up every time he gets it.
Brown to the line and he hits one of two.
Curry with a foot on the line with the step back and it's good.
Tatum driving and hangs it high off the glass with the lay in.
Wiggins rattles in a three ball from the corner.
Williams crashing the boards and gets the put back to go! That's offensive rebound number 13 for the Celtics. Timeout Warriors with 9:07 to go in the fourth quarter.
Tatum with the catch and shoot mid range jumper.
Poole with a beautiful move down low to shake Williams off him.
Smart gets his prayers answered with a three off the glass with the shot clock winding down.
Tatum to the line after Wiggins fouls him on the jumper and he hits both FTs.
Steph Curry went off after the half, he had 15 in the quarter and has 29 on the night.
That is the end of the third quarter! We are headed to the final quarter with the Celtics up four.
Thompson answers back with a three ball and he's got 25!!
G. Williams in the corner for three! Back to a 7 point game.
G. Williams to the line and he hits just one of two.
Poole to the line and the best FT shooter in the NBA misses one of two.
`Tatum with a tough lay up as the shot clock was winding down.
Thompson off the inbound, hits the jumper and he's got 22.
Tatum at the line, and he hits two of two.
Timeout with 2:53 to go in the third quarter. Things are getting tense here in Boston.
Smart finally stops the bleeding with a three ball.
Curry has 15 in the quarter!
CURRY AGAIN!!! They lead for the first time since it was 2-0
Porter launches up a prayer and completes the 7 point possession.
The flagrant is called after the replay, and Curry is goes to the line and the Warriors will get the ball back after the made FTs.
Curry pulls up from deep, drops the three and gets fouled by Horford! They are looking at the foul to see if that is a flagrant foul with Horford's foot in Curry's landing space.
Thompson fouled by Horford, and he hits two of two.
Tatum answers back with a three ball. Big bucket from Tatum who has 14.
Curry stops at the elbow and we have an 8 point game.
Thompson for three off the Porter offensive rebound.
Horford puts it on the deck and drives on Curry.
Great extra pass from Thompson to Green for the slam.
The Warriors fell asleep after turning it over and Brown was wide open on the other end for the slam. He's got 24 points on the night.
Curry fouls Smart on a three ball and that's his fourth! Big mistake there by Curry. All 3 FTs good for Smart, he's got 13.
Curry again! He's got 20 points after back-to-back threes.
Curry drills a three ball and he has 17, with three threes.
Horford posting up on Curry and gets the easy basket.
Looney left all alone down low as he has been for much of this series.
R. Williams gets the scoring going in the second half with a lay up.
Curry guarding Tatum, and Tatum will take that matchup all night long.
Wiggins and Thompson led a little run to get the Warriors in the game during the second quarter.
When Tatum isn't scoring, he's got his eyes open looking to set up easy buckets like this one to Smart.
There was no stopping Brown in the first quarter. He had 17 in the first 12 minutes.
Thompson had been off in the first two games of the Finals, but he's has been the man in the first half for the Warriors.
Tatum got off to a slow start, but finished the half with 11.
Brown went off in the first quarter. He has been the main source of offense for the Celtics in this series.
Klay Thompson looks like he's finally having his breakout game. He's got 15, and Curry has 14.
The Warriors have to start getting stops in the second half. They have done that in the third quarter of the first two games, can they do it again?
Jaylen Brown leads all scorers with 22 points. He had 17 of those in the first quarter. Tatum turned it on in the second quarter with 8 of his 11, whiile Smart has 10.
The Celtics are dominating the rebounding battle. They have 31, fifteen more than the Warriors.
The first half comes to a close and the Celtics have led from the start.
Smart just strolling into the lane and gets a second straight bucket.
Curry stops on a dime and hits the mid range jumper
Smart to the bucket and he gets the lay up.
Porter left all alone for three and he knocks it down.
Extra pass from Smart, and Brown drills a three ball! He's got 22 in the first half.
Great play out of the timeout leads to a Wiggins lay up
Tatum to Brown in transition and that Brown finishes with an emphatic jam! Timeout Warriors with 2:27 to go.
White going into the body of Green, gets the bucket and the foul. FT is good.
Curry to the rack with the left hand gets the lay up to go.
Curry in transition pulls up for three and just like that, it's a nine point game. Timeout Celtics with 4:42 to go in the second quarter.
Wiggins with a clear path to the rim and he gets the easy slam. 12 point game.
Thompson drops a three ball and he's got three of those.
Tatum takes advantage of Curry defending him by going right at the rim and finishing around the bucket. He's got 11, 8 in this quarter.
Poole answers back with a three ball.
Tatum with another three ball!
Poole drives on the left side and finishes with the left hand.
Tatum over the top to Smart for the alley oop
Tatum wide open from the top of the key!
Wiggins on the steal and slam! He's got 9.
Wiggins to the line and he hit one of two.
R. Williams gets his own offensive rebound and gets the put back. BOS continues to dominate the battle of the boards.
Wiggins to the line after the Tatum foul. He hits two of two.
White going right at the heart of the zone the Warriors just set up and he gets a lay up at the rim.
Thompson to the line, and he's got the last 12 points for the Warriors.
Tatum with the swing pass to Pritchard who steps into a three
Thompson gets another bucket to go and he's in double digits.
Williams down the lane for the easy slam.
Thompson starting to warm up from downtown.
Williams with a second straight bucket in traffic.
G. Williams starts the second quarter off with a floater from the baseline.
We are at the end of the first quarter and it has been all Boston through the first 12 minutes.
Jaylen Brown has 17 points on 6-9 shooting! Curry has leads the Warriors in scoring with 7, but picked up two quick fouls.
Boston pulled down 20 rebounds while the Warriors had just 8
Thompson to the line and he hits both.
Brown from downtown!!! He's got 17 first quarter points!!!
Thompson strokes his first three of the game! He's struggled over the first two games, will this be his break out game?
Payton to the line after the foul on White. He hits both FTs.
Brown cutting back door for the slam and he's got 14 in the first quarter.
Curry from short range.
Smart fouled by Poole. He goes to the line and hits both.
Payton on the dump off to Looney for another easy slam. He's going to have the highest FG % of anyone after this series.
Great two man game from Horford and White leads to an easy slam for Horford who has 7 points already.
Curry off the bank over three defenders. He's had a slow start, let's see if that gets him going.
White with Curry on his back, hits the floater from outside the lane.
Brown off the inbound, drives left and gets the finger roll to drop.
Horford just bullying people down low. He gets that bucket to go off the glass from close range.
Smart to the line but he misses both
Curry just picked up his second foul, sending Smart to the line for two FTs after the first timeout with 5:44 to go in the first quarter.
Brown eurostepping down the lane and he's got 10 already!
Wiggins skips around the defenders and slams down the lane.
Brown to the line after almost dropping Payton off the dribble. Both FTs good for Brown
Smart drains the short range deuce and he is off to a quick start.
Curry hits the three ball off the dribble and that is his first bucket of the night.
Tatum going to the rack with that sore shoulder and gets the finger roll to go.
Wiggins stops the 10-0 run with a FT line jumper.
Brown in the corner after Williams hits the offensive boards hard!
Horford drills a three ball!! Don't sleep on Horford from downtown. He hit six in Game 1.
Looney fouls Tatum, and he is slow to go to the line as he clutches that right shoulder that has been bothering him since the Heat series. He hits one of two from the line.
Smart drains a three ball to get the Celtics on the board and the Garden erputs.
Looney gets a tough shot to go, and he gets the scoring started. He had a great start to Game 2.
Here we go!! Game 3 is underway from TD Garden.
Michele Brooks Thompson just crushed the National Anthem. Not often do you get a Star Spangled Banner worthy of a Finals game. That was one. I'm jacked up, let's get this thing started!
Tonight's odds
According to Bet365, the Celtics are a 3.5 point favorite, and the Over/Under is set at 213.5. I honestly am lost with this one. The first two games give no indication of how this game should play out. The Warriors have shown they like to get out to hot starts, but Boston has been able to hang with them in both games. Going through the first couple games, the Celtics have only outplayed the Warriors in one quarter. That was the fourth quarter of Game 1, and it was enough to win the opening game. Tonight I think the Celtics show up at home after having underwhelmed at the Garden over the last two series. The defense shows up today and the Celtics cover the -3.5, which means I like the Under 213.5.
The Warriors starting five for tonight's pivotal match. Wiggins and Looney have been huge for Golden State all post season.
Here is the Celtics starting five for Game 3. Good news for Boston Robert Williams will play today after suffering some knee soreness. That will give this top rated defense a big boost tonight.
Game 3 with Series tied 1-1
History shows that in a Finals series tied at 1-1, Game 3 is worth it’s weight in gold. This is the 40th NBA Finals to go to the third game tied at 1-1. Of the 39 teams who won Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead, 32 of them have gone on to win the title. The last team to win Game 3 in a 1-1 series and not lift the Larry O’Brien trophy was the Cleveland Cavaliers… against the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors would go on to win the next three games to take their first title with Curry, Thompson and Green.
Klay Thompson is yet to pop off in this series. He is averaging just 13 points a game and shooting 10-33 from the field in the Finals Will tonight be his night?
Celtics recent struggles at home
Boston have been underwhelming in front of their home fans in the two series. They have won just three of their last seven games at the TD Garden. They won just one game at home in the series against the Miami Heat in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference. They will have to come out better than they have over the last few games at home, especially against a this Golden State teams that has won a road game in 26 straight playoff series.
NBA Finals back in Boston
The wait is finally over for Boston fans. The Celtics are finally in the Finals for the first time since the 2010 season. Last time they were at home in the finals they still had Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen and were going up against Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol and the LA Lakers. They won that last game at the Garden 92-86 to take a 3-2 series lead. At that time the Finals format was 2-3-2, and LA would wind up returning home and overcoming that deficit to take the title in Game 7.
The Boston bounce back
Boston has been perfect in their rebounds after a loss this postseason. The six previous times they have lost in the playoffs have been followed with convincing wins the game after. They will have to stay undefeated after a loss if they want to take the upper hand in the series tonight from TD Garden.
Finally Finals MVP?
Steph Curry has been to six NBA Finals, won three of them, and has two NBA MVP’s in his trophy case. He has started on the right track in this series, having scored 34 points in Game 1, with 21 in the first quarter. In the Game 2 win he had 29 on 9-21 shooting. At the moment he is the series leader in points (63) field goals made (21) and threes made (12). With Klay Thompson having a slow start to the series, Curry is playing the leading role and a Warriors win would almost guarantee the only bit of hardware missing from Curry’s trophy case.
The Celtics rolling up to TD Garden flashing the home drip. Home cooking hasn't been to kind to them lately, let's see if that changes tonight.
Steph Curry finding his bearings at the TD Garden pregame. He is the leading scorer with 31.5 ppg through the first two Finals matches.
Curry finding his shots and making those shots
Curry has been playing at an MVP level through the first two games of the Finals, and attributes his and the Warriors fantastic offensive performance to their ability to find good shots. "Just feel and matchups, and you understand how the series is going to continue to go," Curry said, when asked about him leaning on pick-and-rolls against Boston. "There are going to be adjustments and different looks. If I can get in those one-on-one matchups and be able to play-make out of that and read the defense well, we can create a lot of good shots. Thankfully those type of possessions, either we got a good shot or ball started moving and we weren't turning the ball over, which helped our offense kind of settle in a little bit.
Brown: the past doesn't matter
Celtics star Jaylen Brown knows the Celtics got a big win in the opener, but is trying to forget about the past with the series even at 1-1. "Nothing in the past matters up until this moment, to be honest," Brown said of a perceived home-court advantage. "Everything that happened in the last series and the series before, who cares. Right now, we're here playing a different opponent, a different team, and we've got to look at it as such. We've got to come out and play our best version of basketball because we're capable of doing it."
The Celtics return home tonight, and the NBA Finals returns to Boston for the first time in over a decade. TD Garden is going to be electric tonight.
The Golden State Warriors rocking the road drip coming into TD Garden for Game 3 of the NBA Finals.
Game 2 recap
Steph Curry was at the forefront of the Warriors Game 2 win on Sunday night. He scored 29 points to lead Golden State for the second time in as many games. The game was even through two quarters, but the Warriors defense came out rampant in the second half and shut the Celtics down in the final two quarters. Boston only managed 14 points in the third quarter, which is the same tally Curry put up in the same quarter. The lead climbed up to as many as 29, and the starters for both sides sat out a big part of the fourth quarter as the Warriors cruised to a 107-88 win.
We are live from TD Garden
Hello everyone and welcome to Boston for first Finals game at the Garden in over a decade. The Celtics took care of business and stripped the Warriors of home court in the series opener, but Golden State responded in Game 2 to even things up as we head east for the next two games.
Warriros vs. Celtics Game 3
Tonight the all important Game 3 tips off from Boston as the Celitics host the Golden State Warriors from TD Garden. AS English will have you covered all night with up to the minute coverage, stats, scores, highlights and analysis of tonight’s major matchup.