Celtics beat Cavaliers
Published:Tuesday | May 4, 2010 | 1:21 PM
The Boston Celtics responded to hasty dismissals of their NBA playoff chances by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 104-86 last night to square their second-round series at a game apiece.
Rajon Rondo tied a team playoff record with 19 assists, Ray Allen scored 22 points and the Celtics showed they\'re still very dangerous despite their advancing years.
Having blown an 11point lead in the third quarter of Game 1, the Celtics almost squandered a much bigger one last night. They led 91-66 with 9.08 left, but the Cavs scored 15 straight and pulled within 93-83 with 3.13 left.
Boston, though, closed with an 11-3 spurt to level the series ahead of hosting Game 3 on Friday.
LeBron James scored 24 and Antawn Jamison 16 for Cleveland, outscored 31-12 in the third.
In Phoenix, the hosts fought off third and fourth-quarter comebacks to beat San Antonio 111-102 in the series opener.