Warriors suffer epic fourth quarter collapse in NBA Finals Game 1

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Al Horford scored 26 points and Jaylen Brown added 24 as the Boston Celtics steamrolled the Golden State Warriors in the fourth quarter to come away with a 120-108 victory Thursday night in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

For Horford, who turns 36 Friday, it was a particularly rewarding night. He had played in 141 previous postseason games, most ever before playing in the NBA Finals.

"I felt like the guys kept finding me time after time. Also Derrick White hit some tough shots there, too," Horford said. "I was just getting the looks, knocking them down. That's that."

The Warriors had a 92-80 lead heading into the fourth quarter when defensive lapses and crucial turnovers from Jordan Poole and Draymond Green unraveled Golden State's offense and fueled Boston's rally.

"Obviously they made a lot of shots," Steph Curry said of the fourth quarter. "Seemed like, I don't think they missed until deep in the fourth. When you have a team that just finds a little bit of momentum like they did and they keep making shots, so it's tough to kind of regain that momentum."

The Celtics made its first seven tries from long distance in the fourth and wound up 9 of 12 beyond the arc over the final 12 minutes as almost everybody got involved in the 3-point flurry.  

Brown scored five quick points early in the fourth and assisted on an alley-oop dunk to Robert Williams III as the Celtics pulled back within 92-87 with 9:35 remaining. Brown's 3 at 8:22 made it 94-92 before Klay Thompson answered with a 3.  

Derrick White's 3-pointer over Curry with 5:40 remaining tied the game at 103, then Horford hit from deep the next time down as the Celtics took their first lead since halftime.  

Boston's comeback was the biggest in the finals after three quarters since Michael Jordan's Bulls overcame a 15-point deficit to beat the Trail Blazers in Game 6 in 1992. 

 "You get a chance to do something else, do it in a different way, embrace the challenge," Green said.  "We've always embraced challenges. It's no different. We'll embrace this one. So no, it's not a hit to the confidence at all not one bit."

However the Celtics were the first team to trail a finals game by 10 or more points after three quarters and win by 10 or more, according to Sportradar. They are 8-2 on the road in these playoffs.

"It's an unbelievable feeling just to be here and competing at this level against such a dynamic franchise the last couple years," Boston guard Payton Pritchard said. "I think we're all just looking forward to the challenge to go through the series and try to get it done." 

Jayson Tatum was the lone Boston regular who struggled offensively, finishing 3 for 17.  

Curry was outstanding all night, but it wasn't enough. He hit on a finals record six 3-pointers in the first quarter and ended the night with 34 points.

Otto Porter Jr. added 12 off the bench, but it was the lack of offense from Poole and Thompson that let the Warriors down. They were a combined 8-of-21.

Andrew Wiggins scored six of Golden State's first 14 points and wound up with 20 in his finals debut,  Green grabbed 11 rebounds before fouling out with 48.3 seconds left. Thompson contributed 15 points as the Warriors began their sixth finals in eight years after making five straight trips from 2015-19 and winning three championships.

They'll have to win this one from behind after being 21-2 in their previous Game 1s under Steve Kerr.

"It's a different feeling. You obviously go into Game 2 with more of a sense of desperation. That's all part of this stuff. We've been in this position before," Kerr said. "Boston played a brilliant quarter. They came in and earned the win."