FINAL: Celtics 118-115
He didn’t show up in Game 1. But boy did Ray Allen make his presence felt in Game 2.
Allen drained a three-pointer with two seconds left in regulation to give the Celtics a 118-115 win over the Chicago Bulls in Game 2 of a first round playoff series tonight at TD Banknorth Garden. The series is tied, 1-1.
Allen scored 28 of his 30 points in the second half, dueling with Bulls guard Ben Gordon down the stretch. Gordon scored 42 points for Chicago in Game 2, a veteran using every ounce of leadership he had to carry a young Bulls team to the brink of a commanding series lead.
But it was not to be.
With the Celtics within one, Gordon drove baseline and hit a floater to put the Bulls up three at the 1:47 mark of the fourth quarter. After a pair of free throws and a stop by the Celtics, Rajon Rondo drained a jumper as the shot clock expired to give the Celtics a 112-111 lead with 1:01 remaining.
Then it was time for the ex-UConn player duel.
Gordon hit a long jumper with 46.9 seconds remaining to put the Bulls back up by one, but Allen answered with three-pointer with 25 seconds left. Not done, Gordon drained a jumper with 12.3 seconds left to tie the game at 115 and give him 42 points on the night.
The Celtics drew up the final play for Allen, the shooting guard coming off a screen to drain a long distance shot with two seconds remaining. With no timeouts remaining, the best the Bulls could muster was a long heave by Tyrus Thomas as time expired.
Allen, who went 1-for-12 from the field and 0-for-6 from behind the arc in a dismal performance in Game 1, was redeemed. Rajon Rondo had 19 points, 12 rebounds, and 16 assists for Boston.
Derrick Rose, who had 36 points and 11 assists in his playoff debut in a Game 1 victory over the Celtics, didn’t score in this game until the 7:15 mark of the second quarter. He finished the game with 10 points.
The Celtics were hit by the injury bug Monday night, with both Leon Powe and Rondo going down with injuries during the game. Powe suffered a “mild left knee strain”, according to the team, in the second quarter, but Powe did not return to the game. Rondo sustained a right ankle sprain with just over five minutes left in the second quarter but returned for the second half.
Game 3 is Thursday night in Chicago at 8 p.m.
We’re not done here from the Garden. We’ll have plenty of reaction from the locker rooms in a bit. Stay tuned.
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