Boston Celtics Shock Cavaliers in Game Three in Cleveland
After losing their star player and the first two games of the series on their home court, it looked like the Boston Celtics would surely get swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Celtics showed the fight of an Irishman, however, and stole game three at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, 111-108.
With a 66-50 lead heading into halftime, the Cavaliers were in great position to blow out the Celtics for a third game in a row. The second half didn’t follow script, though. Boston outscored the Cavaliers 32-21 in the third quarter, cutting their 16-point halftime deficit to just five heading into the fourth.
The Celtics’ third quarter surge paved way for an exhilarating final period of play. The last minute of the quarter was especially thrilling to watch.
Boston held a one point, 104-103, lead over Cleveland with a minute remaining in the game, then the two teams began trading buckets. The Cavaliers’ Kyrie Irving eventually drove through the lane for a layup and tied the ballgame up at 108 with 10.7 seconds remaining.
Coach Brad Stevens of the Celtics called a timeout and drew up the perfect final play for his guys, and they executed. The play resulted in Boston guard Avery Bradley being all alone at the top of the three-point line with the ball. Bradley rose, shot, and watched the ball bounce around the rim a couple times before finally going in.
Bradley’s shot gave the Celtics the 111-108 lead with 0.01 seconds remaining. With the rule of 0.04 being the minimum amount of time to get a shot off, the Cavaliers could do nothing more. The game was over and Cleveland was handed their first loss of the 2017 postseason.
Following their first loss, the Cleveland Cavaliers will now look to get back to their dominant ways in game four of the series on Tuesday, May 23. They’ll have to play with a lot more fire if they want to match the heart the Boston Celtics showed in game three of the series.