Boston Celtics

CLEVELAND (AP) ― As the roaring crowd nearly drowned out the final horn, LeBron James grabbed the ball and heaved it as far as he could.

It landed somewhere.

And bounced to Boston.

James scored 32 points -- 19 in the second half -- and the Cleveland Cavaliers forced a decisive Game 7 in their home-sweet-home playoff series against Boston with a 74-69 victory Friday night over the Celtics, who have gone from regular-season road kings to postseason road kill.
"It was either win or go home," said James, who added 12 rebounds and 6 assists and in nearly 47 minutes. "I'm not ready to go home."

The Cavaliers, who once trailed 0-2 in this best-of-seven series packed for a weekend stay in Beantown -- not a few weeks relaxing on Cape Cod. They've got at least one more game left, and in the NBA, it's as big as they ever get.

Game 7. On Sunday. In Boston.

"It's going to be electrifying," James said. "We'll have to give it all we got."
That was the Cavs' mindset going into Game 6, and they kept their season alive despite a game that won't win any beauty contests. Defense dominated as the two clubs fought for every inch of floor space, every loose ball, every rebound.

James, whose jump shot has been missing most of the series, made two key baskets midway through the fourth quarter to slow a Boston comeback. Wally Szczerbiak, who missed 10 of his first 11 shots, hit a clutch 3-pointer with 2:10 remaining and Joe Smith dropped two free throws with 14 seconds left as the Cavs pushed the series back to the East Coast and placed the Celtics in their second Game 7 of these playoffs.

Boston had to go the distance to beat Atlanta in the first round.
"We've been there, so that's not all bad," said Celtics coach Doc Rivers, who wasn't happy about a few calls in the fourth quarter. "It's going to be a great game and I'm glad it's at our place."

The Cavs are attempting to become the 14th team to overcome an 0-2 deficit and win a series, and to do so, the defending Eastern Conference champions will have to win in Boston, where the Celtics went 35-6 in the regular season, are 7-0 in the postseason and play like they're possessed.

On the road, they're 0-6 and oh-so ordinary.

Still, the Celtics, who are 28-0 all-time in series they've led 3-2, feel good about their chances of advancing to meet Detroit in the conference finals.
"Mentally we feel like we're a confident team," Paul Pierce said. "We've been in Game 7s before, and we feel like this is a game we let slip away. Hopefully, we can go home and take care of business."

History makes the Celtics big favorites. They are 15-3 in Game 7s at home, but the Cavaliers may have some confidence playing on the parquet after nearly winning Games 1 and 5.

"We can win," James said. "We know we can win. We just have to go out there and do it."

Kevin Garnett scored 25 points, Pierce 16 and Ray Allen just nine on 3-of-8 shooting. The Celtics got just two points from guard Rajon Rondo, who scored 20 in their Game 5 win. Cleveland's defense held Boston to its second lowest point total in franchise playoff history and the 69 points were the fewest ever given up by Cleveland in the postseason.

Delonte West had 10 points and Smith came off the bench to add nine, none bigger than his two free throws that helped close out the Celtics, who attempted 13 free throws -- two less than James tried.

Cleveland's win continued a run of domination by home teams, who are 21-2 on their floors in the second round of the playoffs.

Leading by nine at halftime, the Cavs quickly extended the lead to 16. But just when it appeared the Celtics were in major trouble, they responded behind Garnett, who scored eight points in a 13-0 spurt that pulled Boston within three.

James finally ended Cleveland's offensive lapse with a layup and the Cavs got a tip-in and fling-in from Anderson Varejao for a 59-50 lead entering the fourth.

Garnett's jumper pulled the Celtics to 65-60 before James scored on a drive, and the All-Star hit an off-balance 17-foot jumper to make it 69-60. Eddie House made a 3-pointer for Boston, but Szczerbiak, who missed his first five 3s, finally got one to go down, giving Cleveland a 72-63 lead.

Boston hung around as the Cavs came up empty on several possessions and was still within five when Pierce was whistled for charging into James, a questionable call. Allen made two free throws to bring Boston within 72-69, but Smith stepped to the line and as 20,000-plus fans fell deadly silent, made the two biggest free throws of his 13-year career.
 
The Cavaliers played without injured guard Daniel Gibson, one of their best outside shooters who helped close out the Pistons in last year's conference finals. Gibson separated his left shoulder in Game 5.

But unlike in that loss, when they let the Celtics cut a 14-point deficit to three in the final few minutes before halftime, the Cavaliers closed the second period with a 17-2 flurry to open a 42-33 lead.

Before the game, James was confident the Cavaliers would be able to force a Game 7.

"I don't feel desperate -- at all," he said.

Rivers joked that the Celtics didn't do anything radical to end their road woes.

"We didn't hold a seance," he said.

The Celtics will now conjure up some of the ghosts from their glorious past as they prepare for their second Game 7 in two weeks.
"Fortunately, we don't come back to Cleveland," James Posey said. "All we have to do is go home and win."

Notes:  Allen is 19-for-55 (35 percent) in the series. ... James (328) passed Mark Price (327) for the most assists in Cavs' playoff history. ... James will play on his second U.S. Olympic team this summer in Beijing. In preparation, the superstar said he has become better informed about China's human rights issues so he can address them when asked. "Maybe I can shine some light on the situation and help people," he said. "I'm not going on a podium or nothing like that."

(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)