OG Anunoby hit a buzzer-beating 3 as time expired, giving the Raptors a 104-103 win over the Celtics in a pivotal Game 3. The Celtics looked to be on the verge of taking a 3-0 series lead after Kemba Walker (29 points) dished off a terrific pass to Daniel Theis for a go-ahead dunk with 0.5 seconds remaining. That half second of time was just enough for Nick Nurse to draw up a gem however after a timeout, with Jaylen Brown losing Anunoby in the corner for the go-ahead basket.
Brown had been terrific up to that point on defense all night with 19 points, 12 rebounds and 4 blocks but it was a key mistake with the game on the line. Kyle Lowry had a game-high 31 points for the Raptors in the win to go along with 8 assists while Fed VanVleet snapped out of his shooting slump with 25 points.
The Celtics now lead the series 2-1 with a big Game 4 looming on Saturday night.
TURNING POINT
The Celtics closed out the first half with a 19-10 run, featuring the second buzzer beater 3 at the end of the quarter of the series by Walker. The basket gave the Celtics their biggest lead of the game (10) heading into halftime, a tough pill to swallow for a Toronto team that hasn’t been able to get anything going all series from 3-point range.
TWO UP
Kemba Walker: The All-Star point guard played his best half of the postseason against Toronto, scoring 21 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field, while knocking down all six of his free throw attempts. His 21 points in a half were more than any Raptor had scored in the first two games of the series.
Jaylen Brown: The swingman snapped out of a shooting slump in the first half to knock down five of his first eight shots, with all the makes coming inside the arc. More importantly, he provided a dominant presence on the defensive end, piling up a postseason career-high with 10 rebounds and 3 blocks in the first half alone to help limit the Raptors to 38 percent shooting over the first 24 minutes
TWO DOWN
Toronto’s 3-point shooting: They are shooting a smidge above 25 percent from 3-point range in this series and it isn’t getting any better in the early parts of game 3. They have opened the game going 5-of-22 from beyond the arc with OG Anunoby and Fred VanVleet serving as the only starters with makes.
Pascal Siakam: The All-Star was limited by foul trouble and more offense for the second time this series in the first half. He scored just two points in his 14 minutes before heading to the bench with three fouls. He’s shooting just 33 percent from the field in this series and 1-of-8 from 3-point range.
PG: Kemba Walker
SG: Marcus Smart
SF: Jayson Tatum
PF: Jaylen Brown
C: Daniel Theis
G: Fred Van Vleet
PF: OG Anunoby
C: Marc Gasol