As the game began I felt good about what was about to begin. I was at Riviera Cafe for last nights game, with my brother and friends. The crowd at Riviera was full of Boston fans who were full of emotion and energy. This was my first time at Riviera, but definitley not my last. As a Boston fan living in New York to hold every Boston bar you find close to your heart.
As the game began Celtics looked good. Paul Pierce was hitting his shots and playing great defense. Pierce ended the night with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Kevin Garnett also came to play last night with 17 points and 4 blocks. At the end of the first quarter the Celtics had a 23 to 17 lead, and looked like they were going to continue to pour it on in the second. But as the second quarter ended the Lakers had cut the lead to only 6 points.
The feeling of the Boston fans was still positive. Chants of "Beat LA!" and "Lakers Suck!" filled the basement of Riviera. Every time Glen Davis was on the screen I did everything I could to make sure people new to start calling him "Big Bag of Dog Food". As the second half started you could see the tenor of the game and the bar change.
The third quarter was a back and forth battle. For every bucket the Celts put up the Lakers answered. When the final seconds of the 3rd quarter ticked down the Lakers had cut the Celts lead to only 4 points. The fourth quarter was when the Celtics let the game get away from them. As the Lakers got baskets from Kobe, Gasol, and even Artest the Celtics were only putting up free throws. Finally at the last few minutes of the game the Celtics started hitting shots, but they just couldn't stop the Lakers and get that pivotal bucket to take the lead back. Its heart breaking to think that free throws from Sasha Vujacic is what sealed the game for the Lakers.
I am proud of the performance of the Celtics this year. The battled extremely hard against the best teams in the league, and went neck and neck with the eventual champs. We beat the Magic, and Cavs to get to the finals, and those two teams had the best records in the East this season. This years finals could have gone either way, the Lakers just got that final break at the end of the game. Now the biggest concern is who will be back, and how do we get better. Do we need a better big man who can shoot? Do we need to get younger at one of the "Big Three" spots? As a Celtics fan I am concerned that this may have been the last chance these guys had to win another one, but I have been proved wrong before.
Thanks for the great season Celtics, and enjoy your time off... you need it!
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