OG Anunoby saves the Toronto Raptors against Boston Celtics with a match-winning shot.
Daniel Theis gave the Boston Celtics a lead of 103-101 with 0.5 seconds left in the previous game; the Toronto Raptors were hanging on the cliff in Orlando.
At that very time, the Raptors were waiting for a miracle that could save them from a horrifying 3-0 defeat. And guess what, OG Anunoby rescued them from the defeat.
He made the team breathe again after he struck a buzzer-beating three-pointer as the Toronto Raptors won the game against Boston Celtics with a 104-103. Raptors were struggling in the first two games and game three of the Eastern Conference semifinal on Thursday night; Kyle Lowry decided to attack the net voraciously.
Lowry scored 10 of Toronto’s 14 points; all the other players were kind of playing offensively and ended up drifting 33-28 after the first quarter. In the last minutes of the first half, Walker hit the net again.
AN INSIGHT INTO THE MATCH
Toronto Raptors were at 57-47 after the halftime ended, as their pursuit to grab the win against the Celtics continues. Their score was just 38.3 percent from the floor, 5 of 22 from the deep and they did not make over much of their free-throw attempts, with just 6-11 score in that. With about 15 points, Lowry was the only player in the team to go into double figures. Only a few players in Toronto had succeeded to score more than three points.
The Raptors started to play more aggressively in the second half, as the series was on the line, which sure was on the edge. They initiated the third quarter with a 21-9 run to take the lead from the Celtics. Lowry was the one who was trying his best to take his team out of the loop and take the lead against the Bolton Celtics. He was really trying to make his team’s score higher to grab the win.
It was a better quarter for the Raptors, but they were still lingering behind against the Celtics with an 80-76 score.
After the fourth quarter, the Raptors lost Theis at that point in the game when Kemba Walker easily drenched him. It took any realistic hope from the Raptors that they can win the game and defend the title.
But OG Anunoby came to their rescue and here comes their win.
Apart from his match-winning shot, he also had a double-double that night. He finished the game with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Efforts of Lowry can also not be overlooked as he played the whole game for Toronto and also had a high point total of 46:29 minutes of the match.
After the match when he was surrounded by his teammates, he said:
“I was expecting to make it; I do not shoot trying to miss… I was not surprised.”
Lowry, who led the Raptors in the entire match with his score gave credit to Anunoby and said:
“The pass was actually nothing; it was OG who made the shot. That shot was tough, the pass was meant to get to him, and it’s his moment. That is a great moment for the kid. We scraped and clawed and we fought. We never quit until the end. One game at a time and now we have to focus on the next game.”
Boston Walker, who let the Celtics with 29 points, also gave his opinion:
“Much credit to these guys, that shot was terrific.”
Coming back from a series defeat of 2-0 is achievable; Raptors did that in the Eastern Conference semifinal against Milwaukee bucks last year. Grabbing the win after a 3-1 deficit in the series is also doable; Denver Nuggets did that against the Utah Jazz.
But how can one team come back from a 3-0 defeat, Raptors have done it now. It has not been done in the NBA before. Just three teams that had a deficit of 3-0 in the series ever played a game 7, Portland Blazers did this against the Dallas Mavericks in the 2003 playoffs.
As for as we talked about the Raptors history with 3-0 series deficits, that is not good at all. They did not make it against the Washington Wizards in 2015, and then against Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round in both 2017 and 2018. All of the time, they were immersed and didn’t make it up to the top.
This win was a pure miracle for the Raptors, at least for this time. Thanks to Anunoby.
Toronto Raptors will try to take hold of the series in game 4; that is all set to happen this Saturday.
RAPTORS AND CELTICS SCORES
TORONTO RAPTORS:
Lowry hit the 1:31 stretch in the first quarter. After returning late in the game, he played for the final 37 minutes and 29 seconds. Anunoby was the main light of the match as he grabbed the win for the Raptors, but Lowry was also phenomenal throughout the match.
BOSTON CELTICS:
Walker hit the best postseason quarter points of 17, a career-best. He had 14 in the fourth quarter against Miami on April 29, 2016. Robert William’s shot was blocked when 8:19 minutes left in the first half; not good for him as he had been 10 for 10 in the series so far.
NURSE’S OPINION ABOUT STEVE NASH
Steve Nash is the new head coach for the Brooklyn Nets, who was even inducted in the Canadian Hall of fame. He is the second Canadian after Jay Triano to coach an NBA team. Nurse who is friends with Nash has also made an opinion about his friend and said;
“He kept it all to himself. He will be a great man; he is no doubt one of the greatest players ever in Basketball.”
