NBA Finals: Jrue Holiday takes center stage as Celtics fend off late Mavericks rally for 2-0 series lead

The Dallas Mavericks bounced back from a Game 1 blowout Sunday night with a big game from Luka Dončić and an improved effort from the field.

It didn’t matter.

The Boston Celtics overcame poor shooting from 3 and from Jayson Tatum to secure a 105-98 win in Game 2 of the NBA Finals. Jrue Holiday paced the Boston offense with one of his best outings of the season. The Celtics now hold a 2-0 series lead as the series sets to shift to Dallas for Game 3. Per ESPN, teams that take a 2-0 lead in the Finals have a 31-5 (86.1%) record.

Jayson Tatum, left, ceded control of the Celtics’ offense to Jrue Holiday in Sunday’s Game 2 Celtics win. (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Boston won Game 1 after blowing the game open with a 58-29 second-quarter advantage and never letting Dallas sniff the lead from there. Dallas looked like the stronger team early Sunday as Dončić took over with a 23-point first-half effort. After scoring 12 points in Game 1, Kyrie Irving had 10 at halftime as Boston had few answers for Dallas’ elite backcourt duo.

But the Celtics still managed a 54-51 halftime lead while shooting 3-of-15 from long distance. Then they turned the screws on defense to open the third quarter and take control of the game. Dallas turnovers — many of them by Dončić — were repeatedly converted to points on the other end.

The Celtics extended their lead to 83-74 in a third quarter that was capped by a miracle 3-pointer from backup point guard Payton Pritchard.

By the fourth quarter, Boston’s defense was in control, and its 3-point shooting was back to form. A Derrick White 3-pointer extended the Celtics lead to 103-89 in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter.

Derrick White’s late block seals Celtics’ victory

Dallas wasn’t done, though. The Mavericks went on a late 9-0 run to trim the Celtics lead to 103-98 with 1:15 remaining. Then, as the clock ticked into the final minute, Dallas threatened to cut the game to a single possession. Derrick White had other ideas.

Derrick Jones Jr. blocked a Tatum layup at the rim to ignite a Dallas fast break. Irving then found P.J. Washington with a bounce pass for what looked like a layup…

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Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-06-10 02:29:27

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