Jayson Tatum and the Celtics enjoyed another big-time bounceback effort after a loss on Wednesday night, taking Game 3 of the 2022 NBA Finals by a 116-100 score over the Golden State Warriors. The C’s are now up 2-1 in the series, and 7-0 in the playoffs after a loss.
Jaylen Brown led the Celtics offensively with 27 points, 22 of them in the first half. Tatum scored just three points in the first quarter, then ended up with 26 on 9-of-23 (39.1 percent) shooting. Tatum also had another big night as a facilitator, leading the C’s with nine assists.
Marcus Smart was the third Celtic to score over 20 points, with 24 of his own. Center Robert Williams III dominated his airspace, scoring eight points on 4-of-5 shooting while pulling down 10 rebounds, making three steals, and blocking four shots. Boston’s bench rotation chipped in productive minutes, most notably Grant Williams (10 points, five rebounds, one steal) and Derrick White (seven points, two assists, one steal, blocked shot).
The Celtics built a 12-point halftime lead, and led comfortably for much of the game, on the strength of a more aggressive approach on offense and control of the rim at both ends of the court. The Celtics shot 19-of-29 on two-pointers in the first half, and outscored the Warriors 32-16 in the paint. Boston also had a 24-14 edge in rebounding over the first two quarters.
Golden State once again surged in the third quarter, putting a temporary scare into the home team. Curry erupted for 15 points and 4-of-5 from three in the third quarter alone. The C’s went up 77-64 with 9:01 left in the quarter, then the Warriors ripped off a 19-5 run to take a brief one-point lead. Boston bounced back for a late 11-7 run to take a four-point lead into the fourth, and never trailed again from there. The Celtics started the final frame on a 17-7 run to put the game out of reach.
The series stays in Boston for another game at TD Garden before returning to the Bay Area. Game 4 of the 2022 NBA Finals is set for Friday night with a scheduled start time of 9 p.m. ET. You can get the call of every game in the series on 98.5 The Sports Hub.
