Coming off an embarrassing loss on Sunday, the Boston Celtics made sure to put their best foot forward right from the start as they took a 51-39 lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers after two quarters at Quicken Loans Arena on Tuesday.
Paul Pierce led the charge with a team-high nine points in the half while managing not to turn the ball over. Brandon Bass provided the C's with a nice spark off the bench, totaling eight points and six rebounds. Kevin Garnett had seven points and three boards and both Avery Bradley and Jermaine O'Neal scored six points. Ray Allen did not score a point but leads the team with five assists at the half. Boston is shooting a sturdy 52.5 percent on 21-of-40 shooting through 24 minutes.
Anderson Varejao is having another nice game against the Celtics, leading all scorers with 14 points while alos grabbing seven rebounds. Antawn Jamison scored eight points and Kyrie Irving, who scored the game-winning basket in Sunday's 88-87 win for the Cavs, was held to six first-half points and five assists. Cleveland is shooting 42.4 percent from the floor.
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