Mattie T’s In-Game Blog Special: Game 7! Lakers vs. Celtics

1st quarter:

Just getting underway here, and Boston is already making their defensive presence felt on LA. Lakers are 4-for-16 from the field, as Gasol just scored on a short hook shot in the paint.

The Lakers have a big rebound advantage as expected though 10 to 3, as the Celtics are playing without Kendrick Perkins.

Rajon Rondo is having his way into the paint so far, which can’t be good news for LA. That will have to be tightened up as the game gets deeper.

Glen Davis enters with 5:08 left in the 1st quarter to some boos , as he already predicted a Game 7 win tonight.

Ron Artest dribbles it off his foot with a turnover, and then gets it back on a steal.

Great lob from Rondo to Garnett! Andrew Bynum falls asleep on defense & blows an assignment.

Just as i type that, Bryant catches a lob for an easy bucket.

Again, Boston gets an easy basket in the paint by Glen Davis with a nice reverse. Los Angeles has the strong advantage in length with Andrew Bynum & Pau Gasol down low, so they can’t allow this to happen.

Pierce takes an offensive foul, as he takes a charge against a driving Pau Gasol. That’s two on Pau, which could play a big role later on as he’s been very active so far with 6 rebounds.

Kevin Garnett with a silly foul on a moving screen, as that’s his 2nd. Shelden Williams might have to strip off his warmups soon, as the Celtics are short on big men tonight with Perkins out.

Kendrick Perkins acting as the team cheerleader on the sidelines, as Joey Crawford tells him to calm down. Remember, Perkins can still get a techinical on the bench.

That’s the end of the 1st quarter, as the Celtics shoot a red hot 62.5% from the field & lead the Lakers 23-14.

2nd quarter:

Kobe Bryant with a nice pump fake and shot in the paint. He’ll have to get it going soon to keep LA withing striking distance.

Celtics rush a couple of shots on the offensive end, but are benefitting from some bad free-throwing shooting by the Lakers, who are just 2-for-6 (33%) from the line so far.

Ron Artest showing some life with an offensive rebound & putback. With Bryant sitting on the bench, this would be a great time for Artest to give LA a spark on offense. Doc Rivers calls timeout, as his team hasn’t made a field goal yet in the 2nd quarter, as the lead is down to 4.

Lakers get a couple of open three-point looks from Artest & Vujacic, but can’t cash in.

Artest with a steal and a layup, as we are now tied at 23!

Sloppy play there by Ray Allen, as his attempted save sails out of bounds. Jack Nicholson able to avoid the melee in his usual courtside seat.

Artest coming up big in this 2nd quarter with yet another offensive rebound & putback.

Rondo outruns the Lakers downcourt with a layup, as they finally get their first basket of the 2nd quarter.

Ray Allen off to a slow start, as he’s missed each of his last four three-point attempts. Several of them were from open looks, so he’ll have to shoot his way out of it.

Kevin Garnett with an easy bucket inside as Boston re-takes the lead.

Sloppy inbounds play there by LA, as Bryant missed a point-blank layup. 2nd chance opportunity by Artest, who also misses an easy shot. 3rd chance with Lamar Odom, who passes on a three and misses an 18 footer from the top of the key.

Garnett just picked up his 3rd foul, as Glen Davis pops up quickly from the Celtics bench.

Paul Pierce with a nice stepback move over Artest, as that gives Boston a 3 point lead.

So far, Boston looks like the more aggresive team with loose balls and diving on the floor for possession.

Artest continues his big 2nd quarter with an open corner three, which ties it at 29.

Ray Allen continues his perfect free-throw shooting in the Finals, as he’s now a perfect 21-for-21.

Paul Pierce loses the ball momentarily, but draws a foul on Derek Fisher and puts the Lakers over the limit with 2:48 left before halftime.

Kobe Bryant hits just his 3rd field goal of the game, as he is 3-for-12 shooting in this 1st half so far.

Rasheed Wallace with a Tim Duncan-like bankshot, as Kevin Garnett applauds from the bench.

Pierce then hits a corner three to put Boston up by 7.

On the next Laker possession, Ron Artest has words with Pierce, as the two are charged with double techinicals.

For the first time tonight, LA connects on a pair of free throws as it’s back to a 5 point game.

Gasol with rebound number 10, as he’s had a great 1st half despite the foul trouble.

Pierce with another aggresive move, as he’s fouled by Andrew Bynum.

Brian Scalabrine sighting for the first time this series! That shows you how thin Boston’s big men are tonight.

Bad pass by Glen Davis, as he sails a pass over Rajon Rondo’s head and out of bounds.

Halftime:

Lakers have a 29-23 rebounding edge, but is shooting a miserable 26.5% from the field and have only connected on 6-of-12 free throws.

The big story though has to be concering Kobe Bryant, as he has 8 points on just 3-of-14 shooting in the 1st half. If it weren’t for a strong 2nd quarter by Ron Artest, LA could easily be down by double digits at the half, so they are very fortunate to still be in this game.

3rd quarter:

Ron Artest with a nice 2nd effort, as his 14 points now leads all scorers in this game.

Kevin Garnett pump fakes on Kobe Bryant and puts in an incredible bank shot off the glass, but it doesn’t count.

Silly foul by Bryant on Garnett, as he gets an easy basket plus the foul. Boston now has their biggest lead of the night, as Rondo’s teardrop extends it to 11 & forces Phil Jackson to call timeout.

Again, Rajon Rondo gets into the lane on an offensive rebound and puts it back in.

Kobe is fouled on the other end, as Paul Pierce appeared to hurt his right shoulder on the play.

Bryant finally hits a basket, as he is now 4-for-18 from the field.

Kevin Garnett coming alive in the 3rd quarter with 7 points, as he blows past Gasol for an easy bucket.

Lamar Odom gets a nice putback on a Ron Artest miss, as the lead is cut to 6. Doc River senses a Laker run, so he uses a timeout.

Paul Pierce sinks a wide open trey, which extends Boston’s lead to 9.

Kobe pump fakes on Ray Allen, but doesn’t get the call as he misses yet another basket.

Odom again with a nice move to the basket over Garnett. Lakers are going to need someone to step up with Kobe struggling.

Gasol with a great block on Granett, as he draws a foul at the other end.

Just as the Lakers creep back into the game, Derek Fisher is seen walking towards the locker room with an apparent injury. This will mean significant playing time for Shannon Brown possibly for the rest of the way.

Offensive rebound by Glen Davis, but it’s taken away by Ron Artest.  It goes all of naught though, as Artest steps out of bounds trying to  make a pass to Pau Gasol in the paint.

Ray Allen misses again, as now he’s just 1-for-9 from the field. Easy to overlook though if you consider the terrific job he’s doing defensively guarding the best player on either team, which is Kobe Bryant.

Ron Artest misses a three from the right elbow, which would have cut the deficit to just 1 point.

Bad final possession of the quarter by Boston, as Brian Scalabrine is unable to get off a shot before the 24-second shot clock expires.

That’s the end of the 3rd quarter, as the Celtics lead 57-53 with 12 minutes to go until an NBA champion is crowned!

4th quarter:

Pau Gasol starts off the quarter strong with a nice fallaway over Glen Davis, plus the foul.

Yet another missed free throw though, as the Lakers are now 9-for-17 for the game.

Davis with two fouls in under a minute, as he now has three for the game.

Ron Artest quickly exits the game, but comes back in as Doc Rivers decides to put in Paul Pierce.

Questionable call, as Kobe Bryant is called for a blocking foul on Ray Allen. Could have easily gone the other way.

Celtics have only shot 33% for the half, but have used strong defense to maintain their slim lead.

Bryant might have just made his smartest move of the evening. Draws a foul on Ray Allen, which sends him to the line for three free throws.

Sinks them all, which now puts LA down by just a point.

Lakers try to double Pierce, as Ray Allen drives to his right and hits a tough baseline jumper over Kobe.

Glen Davis with his 9th rebound off the bench, as he’s played well in spurts tonight.

Ron Artest continues his big game with a basket in the lane, and ties it with 7:19 to go in the game.

Ray Allen drives to the basket, and is fouled by Bryant.

Rondo & Wallace re-enter the game, as Allen misses his first three-throw of the Finals after 21 consecutive makes.

Boston clings to a 1-point lead with seven minutes left!

Wallace is called for his 5th personal foul with 6:49 remaining, as the Celtics are now over the limit.

Lakers continue to struggle from the line though, as Gasol misses a pair that would have given them the lead.

Allen draws another foul, as Derek Fisher appears to be fine after his brief walk to the locker room.

Right on cue, Fisher nails a big three to tie it at 64 with 6 mins left.

Kobe Bryant then rips down a rebound, as a loose ball foul is called on Glen Davis, which is his 4th of the game.

He connects on both free throws, as LA leads for the first time in the entire 2nd half.

Ray Allen is left open on the right wing, but misses a jumper.

Bryant then hits again, which forces Doc Rivers to call timeout, as the Lakers lead 68-64 with 5:21 left.

Paul Pierce with a nice ball fake on Artest, but misses a wide open three. Bryant grabs his 15th rebound of the game.

Nearly a wasted possession by LA is saved, as Gasol draws a late whistle on Garnett and hits a pair of free throws to extend their lead to 6.

Pierce scores a much-needed bucket for Boston with a foul-line jumper, as the lead is cut to 4.

Bryant explodes to the rim and trys to dunk over Paul Pierce, but is fouled and will head back to the line.

Kevin Garnett gets free under the basket and slams it home, as the Lakers lead by three with under 3 minutes to go.

Pau Gasol tries to push the ball upcourt and draws a foul on Pierce, which means two more free throws.

The Lakers are now over the limit, as Artest’s foul on Paul Pierce will send him to the line with 2:14 remaining.

Gasol continues his monster game with another huge basket, as he now has 19 points to go with 16 rebounds, as LA leads 76-70 with 1:30 left.

Rasheed Wallace hits a one-handed three to put Boston within three, but Artest answers with a three of his own.

Ray Allen answers with another three for the Celtics, but Gasol grabs another big offensive rebound as Bryant is fouled again.

Bryant hits two more free throws, wich extends the Laker lead to 5 with 25.7 remaining on the season.

Rajon Rondo then knocks down a three pointer, as Boston is desparately trying to extend this game as much as possible. Down to 13 seconds left, and Sasha Vujacic is fouled.

He calmly nails both free-throws, as the Lakers now lead 83-79 with 11.7 left.

Rondo misses a three, Gasol grabs the rebounds and the clock runs out…THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS ARE YOUR 2009-2010 NBA CHAMPIONS!

Kobe Bryant wins his 5th NBA Champinship & 2nd NBA Finals MVP, but a lot of credit goes to both Ron Artest (20 points, 5 rebounds & 5 steals) and Pau Gasol (19 points & 17 rebounds).

Will Phil Jackson be back next season to try and clinch his second three-peat with two different teams? Until then, let the LeBron to Chicago watch begin!!!