NO LUCK OF THE CLOVER IN L.A. FOR CELTICS!

Whewww, what a game the Lakers put on display last night in Staples! With the Laker faithful filling the house to the brim inside and out Kobe Bryant, behind chants of MVP, scored 30 pts. to lift the Lakers to a huge Game 1 victory, 102-89. Right off the bat L.A. showed that they were going to be as physical as possible as Ron Artest did the dirty work and wrapped Paul Pierce up into a small package pulling him to the floor in his best WWF move 38 seconds into the contest.

Right after that the game was called as tightly as I have seen a game called in quit some time.  The Lakers led by as many as 20 and never allowed the Celtics to catch a rhythm thus never getting close enough to make it a game at all. Bryant got all the help he needed from his supporting cast as Pau Gasol played  "Admiral-like" defense pulling down 14 rbs and scoring 23 pts. Ron Artest added 15 pts but his defense was the most pleasing part of his game on Pierce as it set the tone early.

The Celtics looked out of sync from the first whistle after the skirmish under the basket betwen Artest and Pierce and they never recovered. After getting favorable calls in most of the playoffs, in Game 1 the referees did not allow the Celtics any wiggle room when it came to the physical fouls and let Coach Doc Rivers and his team know it from the onset. Paul Pierce led Boston with 24 pts and 9 rbs, followed by Kevin Garnett with 16 pts and 4 rbs, Ray Allen 12 pts and 5 fouls and Rajon Rondo finished with 13 pts and 8 assts. Shooting woes were often for the Celtics as Garnett, Allen and Rondo combined for a tawdry 16-38 from the floor as every shot and pass were contested by the Laker defense.


To make matters even worse Boston was 10% from 3 pt. range as they managed just 1-10 from beyond the line. The Celtics, who have more size to use,  were out-rebounded 42-31 in THE battle that must be won in order to win the series.

Bryant took a final 3 pt. shot and nailed it in what will be locker room motivation for Boston as it is sure to create more bad blood as the game was well in hand and only seconds remained. Keeping the scores under 90 pts. is what the Celtics have to do to produce wins and Game 1 was well over 90 and you witnessed the final result. Bryant, who also added 7 rbs. and 6 assts. on the night, stated "Nothing else matters at this point! Media attention, hype around the series is not important at all"! With that said he gave his #1 hype-man, Artest, a huge fist bump to the chest and walked off the court. This series promises to be one for the ages and if Game 1 is any indication, the Celtics have to go back to the drawing board and retool their efforts for the remainder of the series or else it is going to be one trip to Boston and then ....gon fishing!!!

Game #2 is set for Sunday 6-6-10 in Staples @ 2pm on ABC