Get your duck boats ready, Boston.
The Celtics on Monday beat the Dallas Mavericks 106-88 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals to claim the elusive Banner No. 18 while completing the gentleman's sweep.
Dallas stayed close in the first quarter thanks to multiple Josh Green 3-pointers, but Boston went on a 9-0 run to end the quarter with Jaylen Brown, the eventual Finals MVP, and Sam Hauser getting involved to lead 28-18.
Again, Dallas managed to stay within striking distance during some portions of the second quarter, but a late 12-3 run by Boston increased the lead to 18 before a Payton Pritchard buzzer-beating triple made it 21. Boston led 67-46 at the interval with Jayson Tatum scoring 16, Brown 15 and Jrue Holiday 11.
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Kristaps Porzingis didn't play much in the second after getting a run out in the first, but it was probably for the best due to Dallas' success when he was on the floor.
But while Boston's all-around scoring steered the conversation, Dallas couldn't maintain pace because stars were non-existent. Luka Doncic had just nine points on 4 of 10 shooting and 0 of 3 on 3-pointers while Kyrie Irving went 2 of 8 overall and 1 of 4 from deep for five points. Only Derrick Jones Jr. managed double-digit figures at 10 points.
NBA
The scoring woes were coupled with sloppy turnovers for Dallas, which had eight at the interval to just two for Boston. The first Celtics' turnover came in the second quarter. They were hungrier and more energized for all the 50-50 balls and moments.
Boston then bumped the lead to 26 in the third after another flurry of 3-pointers, but Dallas, thanks to a mini Luka Doncic stretch, went on a 7-0 run to keep the Celtics on their heels. Offensive rebounds became the emerging theme for Boston in the period with Holiday, White and Al Horford putting in work, resulting in a 86-67 lead going into the fourth.
The fourth quarter was just business as usual for the C's, with Tatum's scoring and Holiday's defense taking them over the finish line.
Tatum led Boston with 31 points on 11 of 24 shooting to go with 11 assists, eight rebounds and two steals. Brown added 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists while Holiday scored 15 and White 14. The latter two made tremendous impacts defensively.
For Dallas, Doncic once again shouldered the burden with 28 points on 12 of 25 shooting to pair with 12 rebounds, four assists and three steals. Irving's nightmare series ended in a 15-point, nine-assist showing on 5 of 16 shooting. Josh Green added 14 points off the bench on 4 of 6 3-point shooting, but it was another green that triumphed in the end.
Boston last won the NBA Finals in 2008 when it beat the Los Angeles Lakers 4-2 with Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo leading the way.
Sixteen years later, Tatum, Brown, Holiday, Porzingis, White and Horford helped make the Celtics the most-winningest franchise in league history.
