The test came early for the Celtics on Wednesday night. Joe Mazzulla called his first timeout less than two minutes into Game 3. By the middle of the first quarter, Boston was down by 13 points. Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic were very aggressive from the start and looked to make the NBA Finals a competitive series.
The Celtics ended up holding the Mavericks back not by shutting down Irving and Doncic, but by taking their teammates out of the game. The rest of the Mavericks combined for just 14 points in the first half and missed all four of their three-point attempts, only two of which reached the basket and the Celtics blocked the other two. Irving and Doncic played well offensively in the first half, but Boston largely ignored their impressive scoring as they trailed 51-50 at halftime.
Irving and Doncic combined for 62 points but only eight assists, well below their average of 15 per game. Boston was able to hold the Mavericks to just 25 three-pointers, but it's tough to beat a Celtics team that took nearly twice as many three-pointers as they did in Game 3. The fourth quarter was looking dangerous for Boston as the Mavericks cut a 21-point deficit to one, but Doncic fouled out with 4:12 left in the game, and his teammates couldn't complete the comeback without him.
He and Irving have been great, but they're going to need some extra help to pull off a historic upset in this series.
