A sizzling hot Boston Celtics team scored on almost everything in the first quarter, led by Evan Turner who did as he pleased on offense against Harrison Barnes. He had 10 points and a handful assists before subbing out for the first time. Boston took the first quarter, 38-25.
In most of the first half, it was difficult to determine which team were the league leaders, and which one was struggling to get into the playoffs with just over 41 percent wins. The Celtics jumped to a 26-point lead in the middle of the second quarter, and if it hadn't been for Stephen Curry, who scored 19 points on 14 shots, things could have looked even worse for the Warriors.
At the break, Boston led by 16, 65-49, after cooling off a little in the final minutes of the second quarter. They were led by Isaiah Thomas who scored 13 points in his first six minutes on the floor, and ended with 15 points for the half.
Small ball prevailed for both teams
Boston played a lot of small ball in the first half like they did in their comeback against the Charlotte Hornets on Friday. It was quite successful again today, as it forced the Warriors to keep center Andrew Bogut out of the game. He is a defensive force, but when moved away from the basket by Boston's perimeter shooters, he isn’t that effective. And his offense is rarely enough to keep him on the floor.
As might have been expected, the Golden State Warriors came out with a more aggressive defense that forced the Celtics to take more uncomfortable shots. The Warriors were able to cut the lead to single digits early in the third quarter, but after a couple of turnovers, they were soon behind by 15 again. The Boston lead kept going up and down for the rest of the quarter, ending at 86-75.
A couple of quick baskets by the Warriors made it a tight game from the beginning of the fourth quarter all through the end. The Celtics kept ahead right until a little less than five minutes when Andre Igoudala dunked home the equalizer at 94-all. Soon, the Warriors took their first lead since they were ahead, 4-3, when Draymond Green tipped in a miss and made it 96-94.
The Celtics kept on fighting to the end
Losing a 26-point lead might break many teams' hearts, but the Celtics seemed to take it in stride. With one minute and 41 seconds left, Marcus Smart got them the lead back, 99-98, with a three pointer from way deep.
At that point in the game you also need a little bit of luck, and while the Warriors had a couple of plays where possible turnovers turned into made baskets, the Celtics had a couple of shots that were almost down in the basket and went out. Boston had couple of chances to tie the game within the last 25 seconds, but Golden State was able to pull away for a 106-101 win.
Stephen Curry led all scorers with 37 points, while Draymond Green had a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds for the Warriors. For the Celtics, six players scored in double digits, led by Isaiah Thomas with a team-high 20 points and all their starters. Brandon Bass had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Jae Crowder had a career-high 17 rebounds off the bench.
Next up for Boston is another tough task, an away game Tuesday against the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team in great form that probably will have their All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving back for that game. Golden State moves on to the Brooklyn Nets tomorrow, where they end a six-game East coast trip.