Happy Tuesday, everyone.
Let's get right to it.
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Good morning to everyone but especially to...
THE GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
Stephen Curry's incredible play was far and away the biggest reason the NBA Finals were tied at two games apiece heading into Game 5. Finally, he got help from his friends last night. The Warriors used a huge performance from their supporting cast and a tremendous defensive effort to earn a crucial Game 5 win over Boston, 104-94.
Curry scored just 16 points and missed all nine of his 3-point attempts. It ends an NBA-record 233 consecutive games (regular season and postseason) with at least one made 3-pointer, stretching back to 2018.Andrew Wiggins came to the rescue with 26 points and 13 rebounds; Klay Thompson had 21 points and made five of the team's nine 3-pointers.Gary Payton II (15 points) and Jordan Poole (14 points) provided boosts off the bench.The Warriors -- normally dominant in the third quarter -- were outscored by 11 in that frame but made up for it by winning the fourth quarter by nine points. The fact that they could weather the storm without Curry anywhere near his best makes the win even more impressive -- and highlights how great of a coach Steve Kerr is, writes NBA reporter Colin Ward-Henninger.
Ward-Henninger: "The Warriors' supporting cast stepping up in a huge moment isn't an accident. Kerr has continually made a point to get the last man on the bench a handful of minutes every few games, knowing from his own experience as a role player that going too long without seeing game action not only makes you rusty but also leaves you feeling disassociated from the team."Teams that win Game 5 when the NBA Finals is tied 2-2 go on to win the series 73 percent of the time. Golden State now has the chance to bump that number up Thursday night.
Honorable mentions
And not such a good morning for...
Getty ImagesTHE BOSTON CELTICS
It finally happened: the Celtics lost consecutive games in this postseason. Entering last night, they were a perfect 7-0 in games following a loss this postseason. Now, their backs are against the wall, and they have themselves to blame.
The Celtics turned the ball over 18 times and are now 1-7 this postseason (0-3 this series) when they turn it over more than 15 times.Boston missed its first 12 threes, the longest streak to start an NBA Finals game ever.Boston went just 21-for-31 on free throws.This was a very winnable game for Boston. If I told you before the game tipped off that...
The Warriors as a team would shoot 9-for-40 (22.5 percent) from three and Curry wouldn't hit anyThe Celtics would win the rebounding battle by eight and commit 12 fewer fouls... you'd probably guess Boston won, maybe even easily.
That wasn't the case, though, as nothing came easily for the visitors. The Celtics had as many turnovers (four) as field goals in the fourth quarter, perhaps exhausted by the valiant third-quarter effort. Both Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown played the entire third quarter and nearly all of the fourth, only coming out with 1:19 remaining when the result was no longer in doubt.
Not all is lost for the Celtics. They came back from a 3-2 series deficit against the defending champion Bucks two rounds ago and survived Game 7 against the Heat in the conference finals. But they missed a golden opportunity last night.
