Boston Celtics defeat Los Angeles Lakers, 97-91

Celtics erase 24-point deficit, lead series, 3-1

LOS ANGELES - Staging perhaps the greatest comeback in their storied history, the Celtics recovered from a 24-point deficit on the road last night to beat the Lakers, 97-91, and take a commanding 3-1 series lead in the 62d NBA Finals.

There are New England sports fans who've been born, registered for the draft, and legally bought a beer at the Eire Pub since the last time the Celtics won an NBA title. They grew up hear...

LOS ANGELES - Now I've seen it all.

All season long this Celtics team has done improbable things - like nobody sweeps the Texas trip, you know? - but this was the absolute showstopper. Did I really just see the Boston Celtics come from 24 points down after submitting a horror show of a first half and come back to defeat the Lakers in their own building?

I believe I did.

They did it by obliterating the Lakers by a fairly amazing 57-33 score in the second half. They...

LOS ANGELES - The Celtics really wanted to celebrate in the locker room. And how could you blame them after completing possibly the greatest comeback in NBA Finals history and the Celtics' illustrious history?

But there was no champagne in the locker room. No Larry O'Brien championship trophy. No NBA title hats or T-shirts. And Sam Cassell and James Posey, the Celtics with NBA titles on their résumés, reminded everyone that one more win is needed before they can pop bot...