The Boston Celtics have once again taken the lead in the Finals. Udoka’s men prevailed 116-100 in the Game 3 to take a 2-1 lead on aggregate, leaving them just two wins away from being crowned champions after a game in which they clearly dominated virtually from start to finish. The Warriors threatened to come back with their classic great third quarter, but this time it was not enough to break a team that has shown infinite responsiveness.
Boston hasn’t lost two games in a row so far in the playoffs, and as soon as the match began they made it clear that this streak was not going to end this morning. Guided by a sensational Jaylen Brown, who scored 17 points in the first quarter, the locals soon took a double-digit lead, something in which their great defense was also essential. The marking and assist work by Udoka’s side was fantastic for much of the night, forcing Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson to put on a display of long shots to keep their side afloat.
However, it was of little use in a first half in which Golden State could not find a way to stop the Celtics’ runs to the basket. The absence of any real intimidators in Kerr’s little quintet left the Massachusetts side free to frequently attack the visitors’ zone, who were unable to remedy this problem all night and ended up conceding 52 points in the paint. . In addition, this mismatch caused the outsides to close on the penetrators very often and neglect the outside marking a little more, something that was also punished by the local offense.
Jayson Tatum was specifically the one who best read these situations, adding 9 assists to his 26 points and becoming the great offensive reference of his team. Although Brown surpassed him in scoring with 27 points and Marcus Smart was close with 24, the forward’s generating capacity was undoubtedly a differential and made him compensate for his 9/23 in shooting.
The mirage of the third quarter
After being 18 down in the first half, the Warriors again clearly dominated the third quarter in what is already a topic so far in the series. With Curry again as a spark, Kerr’s men signed a 12-27 run to get ahead (82-83) for the first time since 0-2, but this time they were not able to continue their good moment . Boston once again demonstrated its ability to respond to any adverse situation, and managed to recover the lead in the third quarter and extend it in the last to guarantee a peaceful end to the game.
It was already in the fourth period when the succession of triples by Curry and Klay, authors of 31 and 25 points, came to an end, as the Celtics’ marks became stronger as it was confirmed that both were the only threats in the visiting quintet and the spaces they had to set up their shots were getting smaller and smaller. The fierce way Robert Williams closed the paint also played a role, as it allowed perimeter defenders to get closer to shooters knowing that the rim was well protected. With 4 blocks and 10 rebounds from him, the center became lord and master of the area, and managed to have a huge impact on both hoops despite his not-showy 8 points a priori.
In this way, the threat of a comeback from Golden State occupied just a small percentage of a duel dominated almost entirely by Boston. The better defensive performance and the greater organization of their attack gave Udoka’s men a relatively comfortable victory with which to respond to the Game 2 and put the ball back on the Warriors’ court, who will face the fourth game knowing that a defeat puts them against a rock and a hard place.
(Cover photo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)