Celtics, 92-87 (final)
The Celtics have a message for anyone who thinks the balance of power in the Eastern Conference may have shifted last week when Cleveland revamped its roster with a couple of trades:
We’re still here.
Boston earned a split of the season-series with the Cavs with a 92-87 win tonight at the Garden.
They did it with defense, holding Cleveland to 38-percent shooting for the game. And they did it with efficient offense, as 27 of their 34 field goals came via an assist.
Ray Allen led the Celtics with 22 points, while Kevin Garnett had 18 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists for Boston.
LeBron James had 26 points and 8 rebounds for Cleveland. James injured his right ankle at the end of the first half but returned for the third quarter. With his team down by 12, James was finished for the night at the 2:49 mark in the fourth.
The Cavs are just beginning their We-Have-a-New-Lineup Tour, and the newcomers played with mixed results. Delonte West impressed the most with 20 points and 5 rebounds in 35 minutes, but Wally Szczerbiak ( 3-of-13 shooting) and Ben Wallace (6 points, 6 rebounds) both struggled. Szczerbiak was taunted with chants of “Waaaalllly” whenever he made a bad play.
Newcomer Joe Smith had a nice game with 9 points and 4 rebounds in just 14 minutes.
We’ll have plenty of postgame reaction from both locker rooms as soon as is humanly possible.
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