Beaten Boston

The good news for Boston area sports enthusiasts was that the idle Patriots didn’t lose. The bad news: the Celtics, Bruins and Red Sox all lost Friday night. The BoSox were clobbered at Fenway Park by their New York archrivals 10-3 and the Bruins dropped an overtime game on the road in Philadelphia. But perhaps the most emphatic trumping occurred at Boston’s TD Garden, where the hometown Celtics allowed LeBron James and the Cavaliers to blow them out of the arena in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. James recorded 38 points as Cleveland topped the Celtics 124-95. The trio of Beantown losses is certainly blistering for the city’s fans. Another certainty stemming from Friday is the Celtics’ worst home defeat in playoff history. The Cavs have control of the series with a 2-1 edge.
James jammed 21 points in the first quarter for the new franchise post-season record. The MVP added eight assists, seven rebounds and a pair of blocks to his Game 3 stat sheet. He showed little signs of an ailing elbow that dominated the talk of the three day Cleveland layoff. Instead, he finished with an historical night and helped to salvage a split at TD Garden for the Cavs. Antawn James contributed 20 points and 12 boards for Cleveland but it was the other James who engineered the victory. LeBron bucketed 8-of-10 shots in the pivotal first quarter as the Cavs outscored the Celtics 36-17. James’ statement scoring spree in the opening quarter was followed up by more soft jumpers and aggressive drives to close out the half. Boston’s Paul Pierce missed his first six shots and the Celtics’ offense was frozen from the tipoff. The former Kansas guard didn’t find the basket until midway through the second quarter. By that time, the Cavs led by as many as 24 points. Pierce finished with 11 points, shooting 4-for-15. James attacked the Boston defense early and the game never really was a close contest. He was the tone setter for the top seed Friday night. Five Cavs scored in double figures, energized by the best player on the court. James operated as the dynamic force paving the way for a pulverizing performance.
Kevin Garnett sparked the home team with 19 points in 31 minutes on the hardwood. Garnett tried to outhustle Jamison, but instead was frustrated and held to just one assist. Ray Allen was just 2-of-9 from the field with 7 points on the night. Boston’s Big Three (Garnett, Pierce and Allen) were a collective 2-for-10 in the first quarter as the Celtics fell into a 36-17 hole. Rajon Rondo lit a fuse on the floor for Boston with a solid 18 point effort. Rondo was still limited by the Cavs’ feisty defense, notably Anthony Parker. Parker applied full court pressure and stretched the floor as the Celtics often found themselves without open looks and whistled for fouls. Shaquille O’Neal drained 12 points and 9 rebounds and Delonte West knotted 14 points while going perfect from the line. Guard Mo Williams drilled 12 points in the win. The Celtics were just 4-of-17 from long range and managed 43% from the field. Even their size advantage wasn’t advantageous for a beaten Boston. They were overwhelmingly outrebounded 45-30 and had a hard time leaving an impression in the paint. Cleveland stampeded the paint, posting 50 points inside. The resilient Cavs never trailed by less than 20 points after halftime.

Parting Points: What a dreary and rainy Saturday…