Celtics Take Advantage of Opening

The Clippers left a guy named Eric Williams open in the right-hand corner in overtime Saturday for a very good reason. They knew he couldn’t make it from there.

They were wrong.

Williams never hesitated after taking a pass from Boston Celtic teammate Erick Strickland, launching a three-point basket that broke the Clippers’ spirit.

Moments later, Antoine Walker swished a three-pointer from straight away and the Celtics polished off a mind-boggling 105-103 victory over the Clippers that left a sellout crowd of 18,964 at Staples Center desperate for more.

The Celtics gave until it hurt ... the Clippers.

Down and all but out after a pitiful first quarter in which they scored nine points and trailed by 15, the Celtics suddenly found their game in the second quarter. Still, they trailed by 44-41 at halftime and by 77-66 after three quarters.

But Walker made a jump shot. Paul Pierce drove for a hoop. Strickland made two free throws. Pierce made four and suddenly the Celtics were alive and well, trailing by only a point after a 10-0 run to start the fourth quarter.

In the end, the Celtics probably won the game with that charge. They could have easily given up, allowing the Clippers to run and dunk and have great fun at their expense.

Never happened.

“Great, great show of toughness,� Boston Coach Jim O’Brien said at game’s end. “We got down. We scored nine points in the first quarter. We hung in there. We went down again. We hung in there.�

The Clippers seemed to have kicked the Celtics to the curb when Quentin Richardson made a three-pointer for a 100-96 lead with 1:20 remaining in the five-minute overtime period.

Instead, the Celtics rushed the ball upcourt, Strickland whipping it to Williams for an open three-pointer from the corner. On their next possession, the Celtics put the ball into the hands of Walker, a far more accomplished three-point shooter, and he didn’t miss, giving Boston a 102-100 lead.

The Clippers had a chance to tie, but Elton Brand missed two free throws--one short and one in and out--with 14.1 seconds to play.

Tony Battie made two free throws and Strickland one, countering Richardson’s desperation three.

Williams’ hoop was like a dagger between the Clippers’ ribs, however.

“That dude was the guy we wanted to shoot,� Clipper forward Darius Miles said of Williams, a reserve forward who had made four of 24 three-pointers before Saturday. “He stepped up and hit that shot.�

Williams’ basket accounted for his seventh, eighth and ninth points. Only Pierce, who had 35 points, and Walker (29 points) scored in double figures for the Celtics.

The Clippers had five players score in double figures, led by Brand with 24 (to go with 19 rebounds) and Jeff McInnis with 23. Center Michael Olowokandi scored only six points, but he matched his career-best with 20 rebounds.

But this game wasn’t about numbers on a sheet of paper. It was all about seizing moments and not seizing moments. The Celtics accomplished the former and the Clippers were left to ponder the latter.

“It’s definitely a disheartening loss,� Brand said. “We’ve got to learn from this. We had many opportunities to win it. We felt we had them and let this game slip away.�

Brand managed a faint smile when asked about those missed free throws at the end. He had been fouled while taking the ball strongly to the basket.

For an instant, it appeared he might get a possible three-point play out of it, but the ball rimmed out.

“Felt good, looked good,� said Brand, who had made 12 of 13 before Williams fouled him.

Of greater concern to the Clippers today is how they respond to Saturday’s loss, which gave them their third three-game losing streak this season. They will practice today and Monday in preparation for Tuesday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Staples Center.

Shrugging this one off won’t be easy.

“This was probably the most disappointing loss we’ve had this year,� Coach Alvin Gentry said. “We’ve got to learn to make plays at the end. We’ve got to learn to make free throws at the end ....

“Going into the fourth quarter, we had an 11-point lead and let it get away. They attacked us and we were, like, in a home run jog.�