Paul Pierce had plenty of reason to grin after his clutch shot over a surprised LeBron James.
The Boston Celtics were supposed to be golfing right now. The so-called experts had them being swept by Miami, certainly not leading the series 3-2 with a trip to the Finals at stake on Thursday in Boston.
Game 5 began with the Celtics missing their first five shots and the Heat jumping out to a 9-2 lead. Things seemed to only get worse for the Celtics after their lousy start as they trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half. Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo were lost offensively as Pierce couldn’t find his rhythm and Rondo missed a half dozen layups he usually hits. LeBron James was scoring with ease (18 points in the half) and Chris Bosh added 9 points off the bench in his return. Somehow despite all that was going against the team in Green, the Celtics’ defense and scoring from Brandon Bass and Mickael Pietrus kept them within 2 at halftime.
The second half was the Kevin Garnett show as he dominated the Heat with 18 points and 7 rebounds. Rondo had some of his worst plays and best plays as a Celtic during the second half. Rondo tossed a backcourt turnover that was so bad a 3rd grader wouldn’t do it. Minutes later though he also saved his team with a magnificent tip pass to Pietrus for a 3-pointer when the Heat had pushed their lead to 6. Pierce added one of the most clutch shots of his career, a 3-pointer with under a minute remaining in James’ face. That score put the Celtics ahead 4 points and free throws helped them seal the victory.