Jun 6, 2008 12:01 am US/Eastern
Celtics Win 98-88 In Game 1 Of NBA Finals
BOSTON (AP) ―
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Ray Allen of the Boston Celtics goes up for a shot between Lamar Odom and Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers in the second quarter of Game 1 of the 2008 NBA Finals on June 5, 2008. The Celtics won 98-88 and lead the series 1-0.
Elsa/Getty Images
Boston Celtics All-Star Paul Pierce shook off an injury scare in Game 1 of the NBA finals on Thursday night when he had to be carried off the court by teammates in the third quarter, only to return to play minutes later.
Pierce went to the ground after colliding with teammate Kendrick Perkins under the basket with 6:49 left in the third quarter of the Celtics' 98-88 victory. Perkins' leg seemed to knock Pierce's out from under him. Pierce stayed on the court for several minutes as the game went into a timeout, with the fans yelling, "Let's go Paul!" before realizing things might be serious when he had to be carried from the arena by teammates Brian Scalabrine and Tony Allen.
But minutes after being taken to the locker room in a wheelchair, Pierce came bounding out of the tunnel and back onto the court, bringing the crowd to its feet. Wearing a sleeve on his right leg, he walked right past the bench to the scorer's table to check in with 5:04 left in the third quarter.
"I was scared when I saw him down on the floor," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said between quarters on the TV broadcast. "But I told them, 'We've just got to hold the fort until he gets back."'
Pierce was back in the game for four minutes when he hit consecutive 3-pointers 20 seconds apart to give the Celtics a 72-71 lead. After heading back to the bench with four fouls, he rode a stationary bicycle in the entryway to stay loose while cheering on his teammates.
Pierce scored 15 points in the third quarter and 22 in all -- 11 before leaving the game and 11 after -- on 7-for-10 shooting. He also had four rebounds and two assists.
About a minute after Pierce was injured Perkins headed for the locker room favoring his left leg after he was involved in a collision with Lakers guard Derek Fisher. The ABC broadcast said Perkins had a sprained left ankle; it was re-taped and he returned to the bench.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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