The Celtics have the rings, but the Warriors were golden last night.
In an unlikely turn of events, the Warriors beat the NBA champs for only their 9th win against 22 losses this season.
Stephen Jackson led both teams with 28 points, got solid shooting from Marco Belinelli with 22 more, and great bench support from Kenny Azubuike (10 points, 2 blocks) and Rony Turiaf (14 points, 2 blocks) as they stunned the Celtics with a double digit win.
Paul Pierce led that Celtics with 21 points on 7 of 11 shooting. Kevin Garnett was second with 14 points and had 3 blocks, but only 4 rebounds. Rajon Rondo almost had a triple double with 11 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists.
Ray Allen had his lowest output of the year with 7 points. Leon Powe started in place of the injuured Kendrick Perkins, who sat out with a shoulder injury. Leon scored 12 points, with 7 rebounds and 2 blocks in 25 minutes.
In a holiday carry over, the Celtics just kept on giving. This time they gave up the ball 23 times, led by Rondo’s 7 turnovers, and gave life to the lowly and depleted Warriors.
That was all they needed, as they used a 23 to 6 run to start the 4th period to take over the game. They continued to make shots down the stretch and the Celtics looked like they were a bit hungover from their holiday loss to the Lakers. Except for Rondo, they struggled to find energy all night
Losing two in a row for the first time since last March, the Celtics looked like they would win this game while conserving energy at the same time. That was until the Warriors took the lead in the 4th quarter on a Stephen Jackson jump shot at 79-78 with 6:03 left in the game.
After a Ray Allen offensive foul, Jackson followed that up with a three pointer to give the Warriors a 4 point lad at 82-78.
Garnett missed a turnaround jumper, and Belinelli make a bank shot. Rondo then had a runner blocked and Ray Allen fouled out when he jumped into Stephen Jackson shooting a three pointer. Jackson made all three foul shots for the Warriors 13th unanswered points to go up 87-78 with 4:23 left in the game.
The shocked Warrior crowd stood for the rest of the game, as Golden State’s depleted line-up responded to every Celtic attempt to regain the lead. CJ Watson made two big jumpshots while Rony Turiaf hit 4 four free throws and Jackson added two more to keep the lead away from the Celtics.
The Celtics ‘fall’ to 27-4, as they fight for home court advantage in the play-offs again this year. The Cavs are 25-4 and the Lakers are 24-5. This is developing into a three horse race for pole position in the post season.
Next up: Sacramento on Sunday in Sacramento
