NEW YORK — The Celtics have often been a better road than home team this season, and now, on a much larger stage, they are on the verge of closing out a team that was once thought to be the sleeping giant of the East.
Based on the Celtics’ 109-103 Game 3 win over Brooklyn for a 3-0 first-round series lead, that big sleep continues.
Though Jayson Tatum faded in and out of efficiency, needing 29 shots for his 39-point performance, the threat down the other end never materialized. Kevin Durant (16 points, 6 for 11), gang-covered again by the Celtics defensive scheme, and Kyrie Irving (16) were never able to rise above the defensive challenge. Overall, the mistake-prone Nets turned the ball over 21 times for 37 Celtics points.
