- Celtics guard Jrue Holiday was Boston’s top player that night with 26 points
- Luka Doncic’s triple-double was not enough to give Dallas the victory
The Boston Celtics took a 2-0 lead against the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals, when Jrue Holiday, Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum combined for 65 points in Game 2.
Holiday was Boston’s leading scorer on the TD Garden court Sunday night with 26 points, while the Celtics guard scored 17 on 7-of-9 shooting in the first half.
Brown and Tatum, meanwhile, had 21 and 18 respectively. Tatum struggled in the first half, scoring just five points on 0-3 three-point attempts and 2-9 shooting overall.
The Mavericks attempted to mount a late comeback after 3-pointers by Holiday and White on consecutive possessions put Boston ahead 103-89 with 3:34 left in the game.
Derrick Jones Jr. scored four straight points as part of a 9-0 run that ended with a Doncic three-point play, but Brown’s layup with 29.8 seconds left ended any hope Dallas had left.
Jrue Holiday was Boston’s best offensive player in the first half with 16 points. He had 28 in total.
Dallas duo Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving finished Game 2 with the same negative net ratings of -3.
Neither team led by more than three until Holiday hit a 3-pointer with 37.1 seconds left in the first half to give Boston a five-point lead. Gafford responded with a dunk, forcing the Celtics to settle for a 54-51 halftime lead.
And despite another triple-double performance (32 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists), Luka Doncic, who was listed as questionable to play less than two hours before tip-off, had eight turnovers with a net rating of -3 at the end of the match. four.
Kyrie Irving, who was part of the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 2016 NBA title victory, was Dallas’ leading scorer on the night with 16 points. He also earned a net rating of -3, as only PJ Washington (17 points) earned a positive rating of (+2).
Game three is Wednesday night in Dallas. The Mavericks need a win then or in Game 4 on Friday to avoid a sweep and earn a return trip to the Boston Garden, where home fans are already making room in the rafters for what would be an unprecedented 18th banner. NBA championship.
Irving has now lost 11 consecutive games against the Celtics since arriving from Boston in 2019.
PJ Washington (pictured) was the only Mavs starter in double figures with a positive net rating
The Celtics won the opening pair of the NBA Finals for the ninth time. They have won the previous eight and have never been forced to play a seventh game in any of them.
Derrick White also scored 18 points for top-seeded Boston. Kristaps Porzingis scored 12 points. The Celtics made 10 of 39 long-range shots overall.
Irving, who has earned the animosity of local fans since cutting his stay in Boston short in 2019, has lost 12 straight games against the Celtics.
Unlike their 107-89 victory in Game 1When a quick start from 3-point range gave them a 29-point first-half lead, the Celtics missed their first eight attempts from long range and were around 20 percent for most of the game.
In addition to Tatum’s zero points in the first two quarters, Boston was still just 5 of 30 from long range when Peyton Pritchard scored half court at the third quarter buzzer to give Boston an 83-74 lead.