Final: Celtics 95, Magic 92. Jameer Nelson gets off an attempt at a game-tying buzzer-beater, but it comes up way short. Game over, Celtics win, and it's a 2-0 series lead on the road for the men in green.
In a game in which Kendrick Perkins and Paul Pierce both foul out down the stretch, the Celtics fight it out like champions, and they emerge with the win. It takes massive, massive heart to finish off a victory like this.
Pierce finishes with 28 points, Rajon Rondo adds 25 and eight assists, and Kevin Garnett has a near-double-double of 10 points and nine assists.
Dwight Howard finishes with 30 and eight, but it doesn't matter. He and the Magic are in a deep hole now, down 2-0 and headed to Boston.
Fourth quarter, 3.5 seconds, Celtics 95-92: The Magic get their stop. Huge opportunity now — who steps up and takes that last shot?
Fourth quarter, 30.6 seconds, Celtics 95-92: Good news and bad news for the Celtics: The bad is that Paul Pierce fouls out, hacking Vince Carter, but the good is Carter misses both free throws.
Time for Orlando to get desperate. They need a stop and a 3, fast.
Fourth quarter, 34.7 seconds, Celtics 95-92: Jameer Nelson cuts it back to a one-point game, but Paul Pierce pushes the Boston lead right back to three with a pair of free throws.
Time for one of Orlando's 3-point assassins to earn his paycheck? Or do the Magic stay conservative and go for a quick two now?
They still have time. Stan Van Gundy might not want to get too hasty just yet.
Fourth quarter, 1:33, Celtics 93-90: Can't ask for a better Celtic possession than that. Milk the shot clock, get a bucket with two seconds left. Beautiful shot from Rajon Rondo, and the C's are pushing the Magic to the limit.
Fourth quarter, 2:20, Celtics 91-90: Glen Davis is an absolute warrior. Another charge taken by Big Baby, and the Celtics get the ball back in a crucial spot with a chance to pad their lead.
Fourth quarter, 3:35, Magic 90-89: Now it's a one-point game in the other direction. Yet another huge shot for Vince Carter, and the Magic are in front for the first time in this fourth quarter.
Fourth quarter, 3:52, Celtics 89-88: The Celtics look rattled. Paul Pierce foolishly wastes his fifth foul; Rajon Rondo slips and falls as he tries to drive. All kinds of problems for the men in green. It's a one-point game.
Fourth quarter, 4:37, Celtics 89-86: Dwight Howard now has 28 points, and he's even been decent from the free-throw line, too. The Magic are alive in this game, no doubt about it. They're one big shot away from tying it up.
Fourth quarter, 6:06, Celtics 87-83: This one's getting dangerously close, but at least the Celtics have Tony Allen to come off the bench and bring added energy. Big bucket inside for T.A. here, giving the Celtics some breathing room.
The Celtics have led this game for nearly the entire second half, but that lead doesn't feel particularly safe. It's up to the youngsters — Rondo, T.A., Big Baby — to keep the intensity high and keep the Celtics on top.
Fourth quarter, 7:44, Celtics 85-79: The Magic catch a huge break as Kendrick Perkins fouls out. That'll be a huge boost to the Magic — Rasheed Wallace has five fouls too, so it's largely up to Glen Davis to shut down Howard from here on out.
If Davis isn't up to the task, then either you're forced to double Howard, or you're stuck watching him dunk on every possession and singlehandedly put the Magic back in this game.
Either way, bad news for Boston.
Fourth quarter, 9:31, Celtics 85-77: Rajon Rondo is quietly blowing up for the Celtics. He's now got 23 on 9-of-14 shooting.
The C's will look to ride Rondo's energy and his speed to the victory in Game 2. And if he knocks down a jumper or two along the way, they'll take it.
C's have the lead back at eight.
Fourth quarter, 11:02, Celtics 81-73: Rasheed Wallace hits a 3, Jason Williams answers right back with a 3 of his own. The Magic aren't going anywhere.
End of third quarter, Celtics 78-70: Rashard Lewis tries to give the Magic some momentum by knocking down another key 3, but Rajon Rondo breaks Orlando's heart with a dagger of a jumper on the Celtics' final possession.
The lead is back to eight for the Celtics. They're 12 minutes away from taking a 2-0 series lead over the Magic on the road.
Paul Pierce has 26 points. He's making everything look easy.
Third quarter, 3:15, Celtics 70-63: Of everyone on the Orlando roster, Jameer Nelson seems to be the one guy with the most "never say die" fire in him. The Magic just might need it.
Jameer nails a corner 3 here to chip away at the Celtics' formely-double-digit lead. He's had an ugly shooting night tonight in Game 2, but he's been so tenacious in this postseason that it wouldn't be surprising to see him lead the Orlando comeback effort.
A seven-point lead is nice for the Celtics, but this one is far from over.
Third quarter, 6:13, Celtics 66-59: Orlando's scoring drought has now lasted for well over three minutes. With a 7-0 surge, the Celtics reclaim the lead.
The Celtics have been an outstanding third-quarter team throughout this postseason. They've come out of the locker room at halftime focused and composed — they're contesting every shot on defense, and moving the ball beautifully on offense.
This is Celtic basketball. This is also a seven-point lead in the third quarter of Game 2.
Third quarter, 9:22, 59-59: Both starting centers are in big foul trouble. Neither one looks very happy about it.
Kendrick Perkins hacks Vince Carter in the act of shooting, picking up his fourth foul to match the four of Dwight Howard. Perkins is in absolute disbelief at the call, and he's clearly not happy to hit the bench in favor of Glen Davis this early in the third quarter.
Davis will be guarding Howard's backup, Marcin Gortat. Interesting matchup between the beastly Gortat and the shorter, more energetic Big Baby.
Halftime, Celtics 53-51: It's a night of dueling superstars, and Paul Pierce has the Celtics clinging to a slim halftime lead.
Twenty-two points for Pierce. Seventeen for Dwight Howard. I'm told there are eight other guys on the floor, too, but I haven't noticed.
Chances are, this second half is decided by the two best players on the floor tonight. Will Howard keep getting the ball inside for dunks and short hook shots, or will Pierce remain lights-out from the perimeter?
You have to like the Celtics' chances — once the foul-troubled Kendrick Perkins finds his way back onto the floor, the C's should be in good shape against Howard. As for Pierce, there's no easy way for the Magic to stop him.
Second quarter, 3:16, Celtics 46-44: Composure is key in the playoffs. Remember that. Composure is key.
The hard foul from Dwight Howard on Paul Pierce was a flagrant 1 that looked like a borderline flagrant 2, which would have meant automatic ejection from Game 2 for Howard. But thanks to Pierce's teammates having his back, the Celtics' captain was able to retain his composure and stay focused on basketball.
Rather than get even with his fists, Pierce gets ahead on the scoreboard. The man's got 19 points in the first half. Ridiculous.
Second quarter, 6:04, Celtics 41-38: Looks like Paul Pierce has still got it. Anyone surprised? No? Good.
The Truth now has 15 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field. He's just carrying the C's in this game with his offense, having an especially big game considering the complete silence offensively from the other two-thirds of the Big Three.
Dwight Howard has slowly started to turn it on for the Magic, dropping 11 points so far in the first half on 4-of-5 shooting. Kendrick Perkins is in big foul trouble with three personals early, so it's up to Rasheed to keep Howard under control.
Good luck, big guy. Superman's in the zone.
Second quarter, 9:20, Celtics 34-31: Two days makes all the difference.
In Game 1 on Sunday, we saw a grand total of zero lead changes. The Celtics led from wire to wire, so they won.
In this one, the lead's flipping and flopping back and front with every basket. The C's are on top at the moment thanks to a 3 from Rasheed Wallace, but if Redick or Jameer Nelson or Rashard Lewis knocks one down, the lead might not last.
This has been a crazy one so far.
End of first quarter, Magic 28-27: You know how the Magic have the inside-out game and the shooters to go on a ridiculous run at any time? Yeah, about that.
It's a 16-4 run for Orlando to close the quarter, bolstered by nine points off the bench from J.J. Redick, which translates to a one-point lead for the Magic at the break.
Despite spending the final three-plus minutes on the bench in foul trouble, Paul Pierce still gets props for an outstanding first quarter. Behind the captain's 12 points and two rebounds, the Celtics are still in the game. When he comes back in the second, expect the C's to make another run.
First quarter, 3:40, Celtics 23-15: Either Rajon Rondo is the world's toughest warrior or the world's biggest drama queen. Take your pick.
For the umpteenth time in this postseason, Rondo drives the lane and ends up getting plowed over, leaving him on the ground for a solid minute or two. But he gets right back up, stays in the game and promptly draws a foul one possession later and hits two shots.
Are Rondo's constant injury scares all just an act? Yeah, maybe. But a convincing one. And the guy's got the Celtics up eight in the first quarter against a very good Orlando team, so give him some credit.
First quarter, 6:34, Celtics 18-12: There might not be a better guy in the NBA today at guarding Dwight Howard straight-up than Kendrick Perkins.
The key against Perkins is to put a body on him and keep it there — don't let him get to the basket for dunks. Perkins is just physical and relentless enough that it works.
Howard has gotten one basket tonight, on a jump-hook lofted over Perkins from four or five feet out. But that's acceptable for the Celtics. As long as you keep the big guy away from the rim, you've done your job.
First quarter, 9:31, Celtics 9-8: The stone cold Truth (capitalization intentional) is that Paul Pierce refuses to be stopped tonight.
The Celtics' captain has all of their first nine points. He's 3-of-3 from the field, 1-of-1 from 3-point range and 2-of-2 from the free-throw line. Singlehandedly, he's got the C's out in front early in this game.
8:15 p.m.: The big NBA news prior to tipoff is the Washington Wizards, losers of 56 games and the center of much controversy this season, winning the draft lottery tonight.
Big redemption story for Washington, D.C., as a basketball town. Perhaps the addition of Kentucky phenom John Wall can get the Wiz back on track and winning again.
8 a.m.: Everything's clicking for the Celtics. The Big Three are back, Rajon Rondo is better than ever, and the big men are giving it their all, even in the face of Orlando's Superman, Dwight Howard.
But against a Magic team that's been hotter than anyone in this postseason, this is no time for overconfidence. The Celtics are up 1-0, but they've got to keep bringing the effort.
Howard will only get better from here. The Magic will knock down their shots in due time. And Jameer Nelson is going to keep making hustle plays to make his team go.
The Celtics have landed the first punch, but the fight is far from over. Game 2 will be a big one.
