Celts strike killer blow
Close out Bulls with road rout in Game 6
CHICAGO — For a team that couldn’t rebound its way out of a popcorn bag earlier this series, or score without Isaiah Thomas on the floor, the Celtics came a long way by the end of last night’s game.
The Celtics, led by an exultant Thomas, celebrated against an overpowering onslaught of boos — for Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg, a team that showed up in body only for the second half, and even unwitting quarterback Mitch Trubisky, drafted by the Bears a day earlier and asked to stand and wave before the United Center crowd broke into open hostility.
They became only the third team in NBA playoff history to come back from an 0-2 deficit to win a seven-game playoff series after a 105-83 rout in Game 6 — running off four straight victory to complete the feat. The 1969 Lakers were the only other team to win four straight games after starting in an 0-2 hole.
The Celtics play Washington — winners over Atlanta last night — in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals tomorrow (1 p.m.) at the Garden, as Brad Stevens advances his team to the second round for the first time.
“A lot of underdogs in this locker room, a lot of guys who really had to prove themselves in this league,” said Jae Crowder, allowing himself a quiet smile while looking back at a large media cluster — many of them disbelievers, he intimated.
“Before you go to the league you’ve got a lot of guys in this locker room who have been through the ropes of having to prove themselves. It’s just our DNA. It’s not gonna be pretty, but we don’t care if it’s pretty. We just want to come out on top. I think this series prevailed the way we wanted to happen.”
But that was the limit of Crowder’s told-you-so moment.
“Business,” he said of the postgame atmosphere in the locker room. “We slapped hands a little bit, but we know we’ve got a quick turnaround. We’ve got to do this all over again.
“We’ll enjoy tonight, first thing in the morning our minds will be on Washington. We know we’ve got to do it all over again, so try not to dig ourselves a hole and try to have control of the series from the start.”
Their early struggles considered, including at least four games of firing blanks, the Celtics still managed to erupt from downtown at a record pace. According to stat guru Dick Lipe, the Celtics set NBA records for the most 3-pointers in a sixgame series with 76, as well as 211 attempts.
Stevens had predicted that, based on the quality of their shots and misses early in the series, the Celts would eventually start making those looks. They certainly made up for their slow start last night, shooting 41 percent (16-for-39) from 3-point range, while limiting Chicago to four (on 19 attempts, 21.1 percent) from downtown.
They were still out-rebounded, though this time by a mere 45-43 margin — the smallest gap of the series.
And Thomas was just one of the guys, with 12 points, as one of three C’s with that point total, supplementing another overpowering two-way performance from Avery Bradley. The guard, covering a knee-hobbled Jimmy Butler, matched the Bulls forward down the other end with 23 points on 9-for-12 shooting, including 3-for-4 from downtown.
Chicago’s collapse was so complete, the Bulls trailed by 21 points (64-43) 2:42 into the third quarter thanks to an 8-0 Celts run, and slipped into an inescapable 30-point hole (8454) when Bradley, Crowder and Al Horford exacted the damage in an 11-0 run.
“It was a tough game for (the Bulls). We just wanted to keep pounding,” said Crowder. “We knew they were gonna go on a run. They’re at home playing off emotions, but when they went on a run, we just wanted to respond. I think that’s what we did. We just kept on doing it, kept on doing it, until the clock reads 0:00.”
The clock starts running again tomorrow, with the opening tip of the conference semifinals.