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Led by the star duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, the Boston Celtics withstood a fierce Dallas comeback on Wednesday to beat the Mavericks 106-99 and secure a 3-0 lead in the NBA Finals.
Tatum broke a scoring slump and scored 31. Brown had a strong third quarter, scoring 15 of his 30 points, and the Celtics were one win away from a record-tying 18th NBA title.
The Boston Celtics, who now share the record with the Los Angeles Lakers for 17 titles, will close out the series in Game 4 on Friday in Dallas.
The Mavericks went into this game fully aware that no team could come back from a 3-0 deficit to win in the NBA playoffs.
With their backs against the wall, the Mavericks cut the deficit from 21 points to 1 point on Kyrie Irving’s jumper with 3:37 left in the fourth quarter.
At this point, Mavericks star Luka Doncic could only watch in frustration. With 4:12 left, he fouled out and committed his fifth and sixth fouls in less than a minute.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd challenged both plays but ultimately failed, with Doncic forced to leave the game after being whistled for a blocking foul on Jrue Holiday with the Mavericks trailing by three.
Dallas continued to press, but the Celtics found a way around it. Irving found Derek Lively for a cut-in dunk to make it 100-98 with 1:20 left.
But Brown made a jumper, and after Irving missed a tough 3-pointer, Derrick White and Tatum each made two free throws, and the Celtics won their 10th straight playoff game.
“It was a big win for us and I’m proud of how we played today,” Brown said. “They had momentum but we stayed calm. We scored on time.”
“We had some good shots and we found a way to win.”
Irving shook off his shooting woes in the first two games to lead the Mavericks with 35. Doncic finished with 27 points, six rebounds and six assists but left the game with only the third foul in his career.
Doncic was clearly disappointed with the referee’s decision.
“We weren’t able to play physical,” he said. “I don’t want to say anything. … You know, six fouls in the NBA Finals — come on, do better than that.”
Even though 156 teams before have tried and failed to recover from a 3-0 deficit to win in the NBA playoffs, Doncic isn’t ready to raise the white flag.
“It’s not over until the end,” he insisted. “We have to stick together.”
– Porzingis out –
After a sober pregame tribute to NBA icon Jerry West, who died Wednesday at age 86, Dallas seized the opportunity created by the absence of Boston big man Kristaps Porzingis by dominating in the paint in the first quarter.
Dallas led by as many as 13 points, led by Doncic and Irving — Irving’s first 3-pointer of the series gave Dallas a 25-12 lead.
But the Celtics responded quickly and took their first lead of the game just minutes into the second quarter.
The lead changed hands six times before the Mavericks closed the first half with a 51-50 score.
The Celtics exploded after halftime, hitting their first seven shots of the third quarter.
White’s block set up Brown’s dunk, giving Boston a 71-61 lead midway through the quarter.
White hit a 3-pointer and Brown connected on a dunk to extend the Celtics’ lead to 85-70, then to 91-70 before Dallas mounted a final charge.
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