Debbie Downer as Celtics shock
Stephen Curry lingered on the court with a towel draped over his head as the Boston Celtics celebrated a shock comeback.
What started with a signature Curry shooting night that had the Warriors fans rocking, ended with an epic fourth-quarter collapse that leaves Golden State searching for answers following a 120-108 loss to the Celtics in Game 1 of the NBA Finals in San Francisco yesterday.
“We learned a lot from that fourth quarter,” Curry said. “Obviously they made a lot of shots. It didn’t seem like they missed until deep into the fourth. You find a team that has momentum like they did and they keep making shots, it’s tough to regain that momentum.”
Curry got the Warriors off to a blistering start, making a finals record six three-pointers and scoring 21 points in the first quarter. The Warriors carried that momentum over to start the second half and blitzed Boston in the third quarter, building the lead up to 15.
But that all changed late.
The Warriors turned a 12-point lead after three quarters into a 12-point loss in a shocking turnaround that silenced a boisterous crowd that had been celebrating Golden State’s return to the finals after two years.
“When you’re making shots, that’s a boost; and when you’re missing shots, it’s a Debbie Downer,” forward Draymond Green said. “That’s kind of what it was. They made them; we missed. Sometimes you can allow missed shots to drag your defence down. A little bit of that happened in the fourth quarter as well.”
The Warriors scored just 16 points in the fourth quarter after a 38-point explosion in the third had put them seemingly in control.
Boston managed to slow Curry down, limiting him to one threepointer and 13 points in the final three quarters.
It was the biggest blown lead after three quarters of an NBA Finals game in 30 years as the experienced Warriors fell apart down the stretch instead of a Celtics team filled with finals newcomers.