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Allen and Rondo Lead Celtics Past Lakers

LOS ANGELES — It began with Ray Allen’s quick release, ended with Rajon Rondo’s quick hands and finally, definitively, with the Boston Celtics’ indisputable arrival in the 2010 finals.

The Celtics had wobbled through a series-opening defeat and had their vigor and fortitude called into question during the too-long break between games. Their response came Sunday evening, with a 103-94 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers that hushed the star-studded Staples Center crowd and tied the finals at a game apiece.

The next three games are at TD Garden, starting Tuesday night.
Allen put on one of the greatest shooting displays in finals history, hitting 8 of 11 3-point tries and finishing with a game-high 32 points. Rondo had a triple-double, with 19 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists.
The Lakers had a 3-point lead late in the game, then lost their defensive edge. Rondo got loose for back-to-back layups, sparking an 11-0 run that put the game away. He kept providing the fuel, blocking Derek Fisher from behind and poking the ball away from Kobe Bryant.

Bryant scored 21 points but spent much of the night with his arms stretched out to his sides, palms up, shoulders raised, in a mild state of confusion. He got his fourth foul midway through the third quarter and his fifth on a charging call early in the fourth quarter, sending him to the bench.

Bryant returned with 6 minutes 16 seconds left to play and struck immediately, with a 3-point play, then a baseline jumper as the Lakers took a 90-87 lead. The Celtics dominated the rest of the game.
Allen’s eight 3-pointers broke the finals record of seven, a mark held jointly by Allen (2008), Scottie Pippen (1997) and Kenny Smith (1995). Allen hit his first seven 3-point attempts of the night, all in the first half. That broke the finals record of six 3-pointers in a half, held by Allen (2008), Smith (1995) and Michael Jordan (1992).

His brilliance from the arc helped offset the sketchy shooting of the rest of the Celtics’ lineup. Paul Pierce missed his first five shots and finished 2 of 11 from the field, for 10 points. Rondo shot 9 for 19. Kevin Garnett was again overmatched by the Lakers’ front line and finished with 6 points, 4 rebounds and 5 fouls. But he hit a late 9-footer as the Celtics pulled away.

After taking a 102-89 victory Thursday to open the series, the Lakers anticipated a fierce response. They are familiar enough with the Celtics to expect nothing less. “It’s going to be a much more tight game, I think, going down the stretch,” Coach Phil Jackson said before tip-off.

If anything, it seemed that the Lakers might have underestimated the degree of pushback. The Celtics grabbed an early 14-point lead, despite spotty shooting, a slow start by everyone other than Allen and foul trouble throughout their big-man corps.

Garnett, Kendrick Perkins, Rasheed Wallace and Glen Davis all had three fouls by halftime. Bryant also had three, limiting him to 18:33 in the first half. The Lakers’ big men set the tone early, with Andrew Bynum and Gasol combining for 25 points and 7 blocks in the half.

But the most striking numbers came from Allen, all from the outside. “He saved us in the first half,” Coach Doc Rivers said.

Bynum, playing despite a torn meniscus in his right knee, had a huge impact all night, disrupting shots around the basket, tagging the Celtics with fouls and putting every ounce and inch of his 7-foot, 285-pound frame to good use.

As the Lakers shut down the lane, the Celtics responded with a flurry of deep jumpers, most of them by Allen. He hit a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter, then five more in the second, as the Celtics surged to a 14-point lead. He had 27 points by halftime, having hit 9 of 14 field goals and 7 of 8 3-pointers. The rest of the Celtics went 8 for 25.

Allen’s final 3 of the half gave Boston a 52-39 lead, and put a chill in the building. The Lakers, after a meandering 22 minutes, at last responded, scoring the final 7 points of the half.
Gasol converted a 3-point play after driving baseline for a pretty reverse dunk. In the final seconds, Bryant stole a looping pass by Shelden Williams, then rose and drilled a 27-foot 3-pointer. Williams immediately threw another lazy pass, which Bryant also picked off and turned into an even more difficult 3-point try, which missed at the buzzer.

The sequence energized the building and sent the Lakers into the locker room with a bit more bounce. It carried in the second half, as they surged to a 57-56 lead, completing a 16-2 run that bridged the second and third quarters.

The night began on a somber note, with a moment of silence for John Wooden and moving tributes from Bill Walton and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The mood picked up from there, with the crowd responding warmly to a lifetime coaching award given to Tex Winter, Jackson’s longtime assistant, and Jack Ramsay.

It was a choppy, tightly called first half. Garnett got a foul for bumping Gasol in transition. Pierce and Davis were called for illegal screens on consecutive possessions. The Celtics had 18 fouls in the half, sending the Lakers to the line for 25 free throws.