Win Or Go Home: Celtics Focused On Game 5, Not Winning Three Straight BOSTON (CBS) — The Celtics had

BOSTON (CBS) — The Celtics had no answer for the Nets star trio of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving in Sunday night’s Game 4, and now face a daunting 3-1 series hole with the action heading back to Brooklyn. The odds certainly are stacked against the Celtics keeping their season alive for much longer.

After the Celtics notched their first win over the Nets all season on Friday night, Brooklyn absolutely pummeled the C’s on Sunday in front of a packed TD Garden crowd. The Celtics did own a one-point lead heading into the second quarter, but the Nets made their first nine shots to rip off a 16-6 run and take a nine-point lead. By halftime, Brooklyn’s lead was up to 13, and it ballooned to 27 near the end of the third quarter. The Nets won 141-126 to push Boston’s season to the brink.

READ MORE: Celtics Fan Charged With Assaulting Police Officer At TD Garden
Brooklyn’s three-headed monster was just too much for the Celtics to handle on Sunday, with Durant scoring 42 points and Irving 39, while Harden poured in 23 points and dished out 18 assists. That star trio shot a ridiculous 60 percent from the floor — adding 27 of 28 free throws — on the evening.

To Boston’s credit, the team did not back down at any point. Even as Brooklyn was hitting shot after shot, the Celtics stayed aggressive and continued to fight back. That kind of gusto was absent for much of the regular season, and the Celtics are hoping that it inspires some much better play throughout Game 5 on Tuesday night.

“It was a tough loss. We came out and we fought. They came out and they fought. They executed better than we did and came out with the win,” said guard Marcus Smart, who 16 points, nine assists and six rebounds in Sunday’s loss. “We’re playing against a great team. They have three great players and a great surrounding cast around them. It’s tough, but we have to continue to fight. I’m proud at the way we fought. We didn’t win, but we have another game and another chance to fight even harder.”

READ MORE:Cole Buckley Of Braintree Identified As Fan Who Allegedly Threw Bottle At Kyrie Irving

“They’re a really good team and we knew that coming into this series; it wasn’t going to be easy,” said Boston forward Jayson Tatum, who followed up his 50-point game on Friday night with a 40-point showing Sunday. “From game to game it’s about making adjustments and that’s what we’re going to do. Watch film, make the necessary adjustments going into Game 5 and get ready for the next one.”

The Celtics now face a win-or-go-home scenario in Game 5, and the nearly insurmountable task of erasing a 3-1 series deficit. In NBA playoff history, 260 series have gone to 3-1, and in those series, only 13 teams have come back when falling that hole — just five percent.

Such a comeback is extremely rare, though the Denver Nuggets did it twice in the Orlando bubble last year, coming back from 3-1 deficits against both the Utah Jazz and L.A. Clippers. As a franchise, the Celtics have come back from a 3-1 deficit twice; in 1968 and in 1981 — both times against the Philadelphia 76ers.

For the moment, the Celtics aren’t thinking about making a dramatic series comeback. Their focus is set on Tuesday night in Brooklyn.

MORE NEWS:Kyrie Irving Stomps On Celtics Logo After Defeating His Former Team

“The message to the rest of the guys is don’t worry about winning three in a row, just worry about winning the next one,” Tatum said Sunday night. “It’s one game at a time. Just get ready for the next one.”

Celtics notebook: Boston finds its season on the brink to Nets, crowd atmosphere, Jayson Tatum impresses again
BOSTON — Among all the off-court, extracurricular activities that came from the end of the game — a fan throwing a water bottle at Kyrie Irving — the Celtics must now refocus, finding themselves in a dire situation. Their season is on the brink; one loss away from elimination and a potentially soul-searching offseason.

The Celtics were blown out by the Nets 141-126 on Sunday at TD Garden. Boston came out strong, even leading after the first quarter, but Brooklyn was overwhelming. The offense was clicking at perhaps the highest level as the Nets shot 57.8% from the field and 59.3% on 3-pointers.

There were some small positives that came from the game. Boston coach Brad Stevens said their effort was consistent all night, never waning despite the lopsided score. There were some controllables they could fix, Stevens said, but the Nets were that good. It wasn’t an effort issue, but instead a clear talent gap that couldn’t be overfilled by the shorthanded Boston roster.

“We made a lot of adjustments and the adjustments were worse because what that did was that separated the game,” Stevens said. “When you talk about playoff basketball, obviously you want to adjust appropriately, but doing it a little bit better or staying the course when you’re navigating a game or at least within arm’s reach, sometimes it’s the right move.”

he Nets put on a master clinic Sunday; the Celtics just couldn’t keep up. Brooklyn’s star trio scored a combined 104 of its 141 points, gashing Boston through isos, pick-and-rolls and whatever else the Nets decided.

Jayson Tatum said it’s all a “one game at a time” mentality going forward, not worried about winning three straight. The Celtics showed they can beat the Nets in Game 3, but they needed a lot of factors to go their way — the same ones that fell short Sunday. There’s still another game, though, he said.

“They are a really good team,” Tatum said. “We knew that coming into the series. We knew that it wasn’t going to be easy, and I think from game-to-game, it’s just about making adjustments and that’s what we are going to do.”

There wasn’t much the TD Garden crowd could cheer for after the first quarter, but they were plenty electric throughout the night. Any positive play the Celtics put up, there were the 17,226 fans backed up the home team with loud cheers.

==There was a damper near the end of the game with the thrown water bottle==. But the C’s said they didn’t want one bad seed to spoil the rest of the crowd, which was electric pregame and for spurts throughout Sunday’s game.

“It was great having the fans there,” Marcus Smart said. “It was refreshing. We missed them and I know they missed us. I know they missed being here. It was electrifying in the building, exactly how we expected it to be and we loved it.”

Another stellar game

It came in a blowout, but Tatum was again his efficient self — doing so even though he was scoreless in the second quarter. Tatum finished with 40 points, following up his Game 3 50-point game by shooting 10-for-22, including 17-for-17 from the free-throw line.

Perhaps the most impressive part of Tatum’s night was how much the Nets sold out to stop him. It was similar to Games 1 and 2 when Brooklyn threw multiple bodies at Tatum. Despite all those limitations, Tatum attacked the basket, and while it wasn’t enough for the victory, he showed again how bright his future is.

“Just trying to get better, each and every game, each and every season,” Tatum said. “The most important thing each and every night is trying to win. On a nightly basis, just try to do all I can to help my team get a win.”

Some odd lineups

As if the Celtics needed other factors to fail them, Smart and Tristan Thompson were in early foul trouble with two infractions each. That meant Stevens needed to turn to his bench — which was already thin — for extended stretches. The first iteration treaded water at the end of the first quarter; the second iteration buried the C’s at the start of the second quarter.

That’s life with crucial injuries: Kemba Walker and Robert Williams III were both out Sunday. That doesn’t even include All-Star Jaylen Brown, who’s out for the season after wrist surgery. While Walker appears like he could be back by Game 5, Williams seems less certain. He spent the past couple days in a walking boot and doesn’t appear like he’ll play again this season.

Celtics fan arrested after tossing water bottle at Kyrie Irving
BOSTON —The TD Garden became the latest arena during the NBA playoffs where a negative fan-related incident took place. 

As Kyrie Irving walked toward the locker room tunnel following the Brooklyn Nets 141-126 Game 4 victory over the Boston Celtics Sunday, a plastic water bottle was thrown in his direction and narrowly missed his head. According to reports, the person responsible for throwing the water bottle was arrested.  

“People just feel very entitled out here,” said Irving, who put together a monster outing by scoring 39 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. “They paid for their ticket, great, I’m grateful they’re coming in to watch a great performance. We’re not at the theater. We’re not throwing tomatoes and other random stuff at the people that are performing. It’s too much.” 

Celtics guard Marcus Smart echoed Tatum’s sentiments and he was happy to see the situation taken care of swiftly. 

“We just had a knucklehead decide to do something knuckleheaded-ish and it got taken care of,” Smart said. “We’re happy for that.” 

Irving, who played for the Celtics for two seasons, drew the ire of their fans after he left the organization at the altar and bolted in free agency to the Nets in the summer of 2019. Irving hadn’t played in front of fans in Boston until this playoff series. 

Irving’s return was also at the forefront following Game 2 when the guard said he hoped there would be no “subtle racism” from the Boston crowd toward him.  

During both games on the Celtics home floor, Irving was booed incessantly whenever he touched the ball. Irving had a subpar showing in Game 3, but didn’t seem bothered by the boo-birds in Game 4 as his stellar play helped the Nets take a stranglehold on the series with a 3-1 lead. 

Besides from a little egging on from Irving when he came out for pre-game warmups for Game 3, he kept his emotions in check on the court. However, Irving stomped and wiped his foot on the leprechaun logo at mid-court at the conclusion of Game 4 before the water bottle came flying at him. 

“It’s unfortunate that sports has come to a lot of this crossroads where you’re seeing a lot of old ways come up,” Irving said. “It’s been that way in history in terms of entertainment, performers and sports for a long period of time and just underlying racism and treating people like they’re in a human zoo.” 

There have been several incidents involving fans and players this postseason. Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young was spit on by someone in the crowd at Madison Square Garden and Washington Wizards guard Russell Westbrook had popcorn dumped on him as he made his way down the locker room tunnel in Philadelphia. The parents of Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant had racially-charged remarks hurled at them in the stands of Utah as well. 

Combined now with a plastic bottled being tossed at his teammate, Kevin Durant was fed up with that sort of fan behavior.