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BOSTON, Massachusetts: Paul Pierce scored 19 points
and Boston’s defense was again dominant Thursday as the Celtics
beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 89-73 in the National Basketball
Association playoffs.
The victory gave the Celtics a
2-0 lead in the best-of-7 Eastern Conference semifinal series.
“It was a total team effort,”
Pierce said. “We kept the turnovers down, we rebounded the ball,
we made the extra pass and then we got the job done defensively.
That’s true Celtic basketball right there.”
Ray Allen broke out of his slump
with 16 points and Kevin Garnett chipped in 13 points and 12
rebounds as the Celtics took a commanding lead before the series
shifts to Cleveland for Game 3 on Saturday.
After notching the NBA’s best
road record in the regular season of 31-10, the Celtics are 0-3 on
the road in the postseason.
“We’re focused on trying to
get this first one in Cleveland,” Garnett said. “Defense
obviously has to be there. We’re going into a hostile building and
they play very well at home. Some way, somehow, we have to carry
this energy over.”
As he did in Game 1, Cleveland
superstar LeBron James struggled, finishing with 21 points on
6-of-24 shooting. Overall the Cavaliers shot 35 percent from the
floor.
James, a five-time All-Star, also
turned the ball over seven times. The 23-year-old is 8-of-42 from
the floor with 17 turnovers in the series overall.
--AFP
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