Celtics eyeing clincher
LOS ANGELES — When the Celtics wrapped up Game 5 and moved one win away from an unprecedented 18th championship, the jubilant Boston crowd sent them off to the West Coast for the final time this season with one last chorus of that age-old "Beat L-A!" chant.
Although Kevin Garnett and his teammates appreciate the suggestion, they know it's easier shouted than done — particularly in the playoffs, and especially on the road.
The Celtics will have to overcome their unimpressive record in closeout playoff games away from Boston to finish off the Lakers in Game 6 of the NBA finals on Tuesday night.
For all their remarkable success over the past three seasons, including the 2008 title and another finals run this year, the Celtics have converted just one of their eight chances to finish a playoff series away from home.
They've got two opportunities at Staples Center, which could be the fifth building in which the Celtics have won a title at the expense of their longtime rivals — or the site of a remarkable Hollywood ending for the Lakers. If Los Angeles survives Tuesday, a champion will be crowned Thursday in Game 7.
"They're playing at home. Home is always where your heart is," Garnett said. "With the severity of the game, it's all-out on both ends for both teams. This will probably be the hardest game of the season, if not of the series, if not of everybody's career, this game coming up."
Even after winning three of the series' last four games, and even after compiling the NBA's second-best road record in the regular season (26-15), the Celtics can't be lulled into thinking they've got the Lakers on the run.
Although Boston narrowly won Game 2 at Staples Center on the strength of Ray Allen's historic 3-point shooting binge and Rajon Rondo's late-game poise, Boston knows the Lakers are 9-1 at home in the postseason, with everybody from Kobe Bryant to the Lakers' bedraggled bench playing with much more passion and confidence.
"The Lakers ... got homecourt advantage, but we've played the best all year on the road," Boston coach Doc Rivers said
