Celtics capture 2-0 lead

Boston defeated Los Angeles, 108-102, in Game 2.

BOSTON (AP) — Banner No. 17 is halfway to the rafters. The Celtics are two wins from another NBA championship.

And maybe a little lucky to be there.

Paul Pierce, darting around the parquet floor with ease, scored 28 points, Boston’s defense mobbed Kobe Bryant long enough and unknown Leon Powe scored 21 points as the Celtics held off a remarkable Los Angeles rally for a 108-102 win over the Lakers on Sunday night.

The Celtics have a 2-0 lead in these trip-down-memory-lane NBA finals.

The Celtics had to work every second to get the win.

The Lakers trailed by 24 with less than 8 minutes to go, but pulled to 104-102 on two free throws by Bryant with 38.4 seconds left. But Pierce made two free throws, then blocked a jumper by Sasha Vujacic, and James Posey made two free throws with 12.6 seconds left to ice it for Boston.

Early on, Pierce had no trouble with his right knee or the Los Angeles defense, scoring 16 points in the first half and helping the Boston Celtics take a 54-42 lead.

Fellow All-Stars Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen also had strong halves for the Celtics. They got help in the form of foul trouble for Bryant, who picked up three in the half and was on the bench when the Celtics pulled away in the closing minute.

Boston was 14-of-19 from the free throw line, while Los Angeles was 2-for-2.

Pierce sprained his right knee and was carried from the floor in the third quarter of Game 1, but quickly returned and led the Celtics to a 98-88 victory. He didn’t practice Friday, but had treatment over the weekend and was ready to go by Sunday morning.

He shot 5-of-9 in the half and added five assists. Garnett had eight points and seven rebounds, while Allen scored nine points.

Kendrick Perkins also was in the starting lineup despite spraining his right ankle in Game 1. He scored five points in only 10 minutes, but the Celtics didn’t miss him because Powe came off the bench to score eight, aggressively taking the ball to the rim and taking nine free throws, making six.

Pau Gasol scored 13 points for the Lakers. Bryant had nine on 4-of-10 shooting.