1983-84 Boston Celtics
Bullets 100, Celtics 93
Record: 19-7
12/17/1983
The Washington Bullets may be bringing up the rear in the Atlantic Division but you could never tell it by the way they play against the Celtics. Just when you thought that Boston had all the ingredients of a sloppy but typically hard-fought victory over the pesky Bullets, Washington shocked the sellout crowd of 14,890 at the Garden by pulling off a 100-93 upset, ending Boston's six-game winning streak. Tough Jeff Ruland, with 28 points, led the Bullets to victory. But this one was won after he left the game on fouls, on clutch free throws by rookie Tom Kopecki and veteran Frank Johnson. Boston led, 91-90, with 55 seconds left on a three-point play by Larry Bird, who led the Celtics with 30 points. But Boston could score only two free throws the rest of the way.
That Washington would continue to be a team to give the Celtics fits became obvious in the opening period when the Bullets went to their half-court game, working inside to their big front line of Ruland, Rick Mahorn and Greg Ballard, who matched Boston basket for basket and muscle for muscle. The Celtics came out running and took an 8-5 lead, with Robert Parish scoring twice. Washington came back to tie the game at 10 and again at 14 and 16, and clearly it was a game to be fought in the trenches.
Bird warmed up and gave Boston a 19-16 lead on a three-point play. Then Kevin McHale came in, and the Celtic attack went inside. His turnaround jumper at 4:12 produced a 23-18 lead. Boston led, 31-24, before Tom McMillen hit a free throw to make it 31-25 at the quarter. Boston's lead evaporated in the second period in one of the coldest shooting displays seen by a Celtic team in a while. Boston sank only 6 of 23 shots, and after fighting back from a 45-40 deficit to take a one-point lead, 46-45, went cold again.
The Celtics seemed comfortably in front when McHale sank a basket with 7:56 left in the period. But while Washington was reeling off nine straight points, Boston would not score for almost four minutes, and thus found itself behind, 39-37. A free throw by Bird ended the drought at 4:06. Cedric Maxwell sank a hook shot to bring Boston to within one at 41-40, only to see the Bullets surge ahead by five. Play had been rough throughout the whole first half, and some of the fans started yelling for the return of the scab referees with 4 minutes to play. After taking a one-point lead, the Celtics fell behind again at halftime, 49-46. Larry Bird led Boston with 16 points. Ruland had 13 to lead Washington.
Whatever adjustments the Celtics had planned at halftime backfired almost immediately after Bird sank a basket to pull them within one at 49-48. Ruland hit three straight baskets and Ricky Sobers followed with a jump shot, and suddenly Boston found itself trailing by nine points, 57-48. Maxwell hit a three-point shot to tighten things up briefly. But with Washington leading, 59-53, things went from bad to worse. Ballard hit a jump shot, and Ruland followed with an amazing performance. First, he finished off a rare Bullet fast break.
Then, with the crowd gasping, he sank his first three-pointer of the year, and perhaps his life, and Washington led, 66-53. McHale, who had scored eight points in the first half, began to do his thing, scoring eight straight points, and with 3:29 left, the Celtics had cut the lead to seven points, 68-61. McHale's work overshadowed the floor leadership of Quinn Buckner, who sank two free throws to help Boston cut the lead to 68-63. Boston finally tied the score with a five-point surge that highlighted a 15-2 run. Danny Ainge sank a free throw and Parish and Maxwell hit baskets to create a tie at 68-68. Rookie Jeff Malone broke a 6 minute 11 second drought by Washington with a jumper with 48 seconds to play, putting the Bullets ahead, 70-68. And after Parish tied the game 16 seconds later, Johnson sank two free throws to put Washington ahead. But the quarter ended in spectacular fashion as Bird, who returned during a 20-second timeout, hit a three-point play at the buzzer that gave Boston a 73-72 lead after three periods.
The Bullets rallied for a 76-73 lead at the start of the final period. But then disaster struck as Ruland picked up his fifth foul, and Boston took off again. Two free throws by Parish, and baskets by McHale and Bird gave Boston a 79-76 lead. McHale got into foul trouble with Boston leading, 81-78, and was replaced by Parish with 7 minutes to play. Parish, in turn, picked up fouls No. 4 and 5 and two free throws by Kopecki enabled the Bullets to tie the game at 81-81. When Bird sank a reverse layup with 4:21 left, the Celtics led, 85-83. Ruland and Sobers returned with 4:04 to play and Ruland's basket with 2:45 left tied the game at 85-85.
With two minutes left, Ballard hit a jumper to put Washington ahead by two. But then the Bullets got a double bad break. Ruland fouled out trying to stop McHale on a layup, and his language offended referee John Vanek who called him for a technical foul, too. Boston then sank three straight free throws for an 88-87 Boston lead with 1:46 to play. Bird had been playing guard during the final minutes, and the Bullets took advantage of this for a three point-play by Sobers and a two-point lead at 90-88. Bird made a three-point play at the other end, but Sobers and Kopecki came right back with a pair of jump shots that, with 27 seconds to play, helped Washington to a 94-91 lead, and the sealing of Boston's fate.
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