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Curry came out firing in the third quarter and Jordan Poole's
three pointer at the buzzer from well beyond the arc capped a
35-14 third-quarter blitz that put the home team up 87-64.
The Warriors continued to play physical defense and make shots
to extend the lead over the final 12 minutes and avoid a
fourth-quarter collapse like the one they suffered in Game One.
Curry led the way for the "Dubs," draining five three pointers
to go with six rebounds and four assists while playing
outstanding defense.
"Steph was breathtaking in that third quarter," Warriors head
coach Steve Kerr said.
"Not just the shotmaking but the defensive effort. He just
doesn't get enough credit for his level of conditioning,
physicality and defense," Kerr said.
"People go at him to try to wear him down because they know how
important he is to us offensively. And it is pretty dramatic,
the difference in Steph's strength and physicality between now
and when I first got here eight years ago.
"The guy is amazing; he just keeps working."
The Celtics started the contest right where they left off at the
end of Game One, using their superior size to frustrate Warriors
shooters and swishing threes to take an early nine-point lead.
But 11 first-half Celtics turnovers gave the Warriors life and
the tense first half ended with an Andrew Wiggins putback layup
that gave the Warriors a two-point lead.
It was all Warriors after the break as the Celtics struggled on
offense, committing 19 turnovers that led to 33 Warriors points
and shooting just 36% from the field.
"For us, that was a little disappointing, to give up 33 points
off of 19 turnovers," Celtics head coach Ime Udoka said.
"That's kind of been a constant theme in the playoffs. When that
happens, we're in trouble."
The pivotal Game Three is set for Wednesday in Boston.
In previous Finals series split 1-1, the team that wins Game
Three has gone on to win the series 82.1% of the time (32-7),
according to the NBA.
Prior to the start of Game Two, players and coaches on both
teams wore orange t-shirts that said "End Gun Violence" on the
front and a list of advocacy organizations working to address
the issue on the back, amid a surge in mass shooting in the
United States.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and
Bradley Perrett)
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