The Boston Celtics continued their quest for an 18th National Basketball Association (NBA) championship with a second straight victory.
The Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks 105-98 at home in Game 2 of the best-of-seven 2023-2024 NBA Championship on Tuesday (Feb. 10) at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
After defeating Dallas by 18 points in Game 1, the Celtics clinched the first two games of the series to take a 카지노사이트 commanding lead heading into the championship.
The Celtics have won 17 NBA Championships, tied with the Los Angeles Lakers for the most in the franchise’s history.
The Celtics, who are seeking their first-ever 18th title, will travel to the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, on Wednesday for Game 3 against the Dallas Mavericks.
The “storied” Celtics, who went 64-18 in the regular season and finished first in the East, shut down the Dallas offense with their trademark stingy defense.
Starting in the first quarter, the Celtics chilled the opposition’s offense with three blocks and forced Dallas ace Luka Doncic into three errors.
Trailing 25-28 in the second quarter, Boston rallied with nine straight points to take a 54-51 lead into halftime on a last-second three-pointer by Jrue Holiday.
Boston scored 10 straight points midway through the third quarter to take control. Jaylen Brown stole a pass from Doncic and drove to the basket, and Holiday responded with a powerful dunk to make it an eight-point lead, sending the home fans into a frenzy.
Boston, which entered the final quarter with an 83-74 lead after a quarter-ending buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Patty Pritchard, got back-to-back baskets from Holiday and Derrick White with 4:03 and 3:34 left, respectively, to tie the game.
Brown sealed the win with a layup with 29.1 seconds left in regulation.
Boston’s Holiday finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds.
In addition to the one-two punch of Brown (21 points, seven assists), Jayson Tatum (18 points, 12 assists, nine rebounds) chipped in with a triple-double.
White added 18 points and five rebounds, including four 3-pointers.
Dallas’ Doncic recorded a triple-double with 32 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists, but he also committed eight turnovers and his team hung its head in defeat.