[Chance Harper]

Pierce, Celtics grab lead over Kobe and Lakers

Game 1 lived up to the hype as the Boston Celtics rallied behind an injured Paul Pierce to topple both the Los Angeles Lakers and the three-point spread, 98-88. Now the buildup comes for Game 2 at The Garden on Sunday with the Celts early two-point faves to grab a 2-0 lead in the NBA Finals. Will the extra rest benefit Boston who has played 21 postseason tilts already?

This is why David Stern was smiling.

The NBA commish has been accused time and time again of conspiring to make life easier for the league’s marquee teams – rigging the draft lottery with trick envelopes, for example. As the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics marched inexorably toward the 2008 NBA Finals, every missed call in favor of either team was held up as proof of Stern’s chicanery.

But the Lakers and Celtics are here today because they are the best two teams in the league. We saw ample evidence of that on Thursday night at the Garden.

We’ve already had an entire NBA Finals full of storylines wrapped into one single game. The Celtics won Game 1 on their home court, pulling away at the end for a 98-88 victory and a well-deserved payday as 3-point favorites. Both teams had their chances. The game turned when Paul Pierce went to the dressing room with a sprained knee. To the delight of the Garden crowd, Pierce came back, limping slightly, and calmly nailed a pair of back-to-back 3-point shots late in the third quarter to give the Celtics a lead they would never relinquish.

Boston got the win on Thursday with outstanding team defense. Ray Allen has a something of a personal grudge against Kobe Bryant that fuels his defensive play against the league’s reigning MVP. Bryant shot 9-for-26 for the Lakers, missing all three of his 3-point attempts on a night when Los Angeles was 3-for-14 from downtown. At the other end, Allen scored 19 points and added eight rebounds and five assists. Those poor series he had against Atlanta and Cleveland are distant memories now.

The Celtics also got more of what they wanted out of Sam Cassell. The veteran point guard was 4-for-9 from the field in relief of Rajon Rondo, as the Boston bench outscored the Los Angeles reserves 17-15. The C’s also got 10 rebounds combined from P.J. Brown and Leon Powe to cement a 46-33 advantage over L.A. on the glass. Pure Celtics basketball.

Boston can expect a better effort from the Lakers in Sunday’s Game 2. They couldn’t buy a bucket in the fourth quarter, watching a number of open looks fail to go in. Luke Walton was a non-factor with zero points in 14 tentative minutes. And the Lakers never got their triangle offense going in the second half, mainly because Bryant was taking so many shots. The Celtics get full credit for contesting those shots, but it’s likely that more of them will fall for Kobe next time.

There are three main questions for Boston coming out of the series opener, and they all involve player health. Pierce reported that he heard a “pop” in his right knee, but was able to put weight on it and return to the game. Kendrick Perkins also suffered a sprained left ankle and had to leave the court mere moments after Pierce’s exit; he came back after getting the ankle re-taped, finishing the night with a very quiet one point and four boards in 23 minutes. And Kevin Garnett was visibly sluggish at times; the Celtics played their 21st playoff game on Thursday (going 9-12 against the spread) compared to 16 for the Lakers at 10-5-1 ATS.

The earliest betting odds for Sunday’s Game 2 had the Celtics as 1½-point faves, jumping up to two points after the first hour of betting. The first total to go up on the board was 190 points; Game 1 went under its posted total of 191½. Tip-off for the rematch will be at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on ABC.

[Illtakethoseodds]

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