Allen hits seven from beyond arc, gives Celtics lead at half

Basketball Betting Lines

06/06/2010 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ray Allen made his first seven three-point shots in the first half on the way to an incredible 27-point effort, boosting the Celtics to a 54-48 advantage over the Los Angeles Lakers at halftime in Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

Allen's effort has already tied a single-game Finals record for most three- pointers in a game. He went 7-of-9 in the series-clinching Game 6 against the Lakers two years ago. Kenny Smith (HOU, 1995) and Scottie Pippen (CHI, 1997) are the others with seven three-pointers in one NBA Finals game.

The old record for most three-balls in one half of a Finals game is six, last done by Allen on June 17, 2008.

Boston is 8-for-11 from beyond the arc, while the Lakers are just 1-for-9, but Kobe Bryant has the defending NBA champions back in the game after Los Angeles trailed by as many as 14 points.

Andrew Bynum was one of the few bright spots for the Lakers in the first half with 11 points and four blocks. Bryant, who also has 11 points, three fewer than teammate Pau Gasol, made a couple of steals in the waning seconds, sinking a three-pointer on one of the attempts with 0.2 seconds left to account for the difference at the half. LA scored the final seven of the half.

Allen's performance is already a sharp contrast to his 12-point effort in the opener on Thursday, when the Lakers came away with a 102-89 victory. He had 12 points on 3-of-8 shooting in that game.

Boston's Kevin Garnett was forced to sit for a big portion of the first half after picking up two fouls less than three minutes into the game and his third with 8:09 left in the half.

Gasol's jumper provided the Lakers with a 21-20 lead with nearly four minutes left in the opening quarter, but Rasheed Wallace's three-ball gave Boston the lead and started a 9-1 spurt to end the period. He capped it with another jumper inside the final minute for the 29-22 advantage.

Allen's sharp long-distance shooting widened the gap in the second. He made four attempts from beyond the arc in less than a four-minute span for a 45-32 lead. Every time the Celtics seemed to get the ball in the post, Allen was open, and the 34-year-old kept sinking shot after shot. The 13-point lead was attained after a make from the left corner with under six minutes left.

Bynum went 1-of-2 at the foul line, but Pierce then drained two from the charity stripe for a 47-33 difference.

The Lakers were within 10 when Bryant was whistled for an offensive foul for lowering the shoulder into Allen with 3:20 left in the half. Allen was called for a similar infraction at the other end.

Allen's pull-up from the right wing went in for a 52-39 lead, making him 7-for-7 from long distance. He finally missed with about a minute left.

Bryant's late surge, combined with Boston's 18 personal fouls in the first half, allowed the Lakers back into the game.

Despite being behind at halftime, history is on the side of the Lakers. When Phil Jackson wins Game 1 of any playoff series, best-of-five or best-of-seven, his teams are 47-0, having gone 24-0 with Chicago and 23-0 with the Lakers. When Jackson's teams begin a series with a 2-0 lead, he is 36-0 all-time. And when holding a series lead of any kind, his squads are 54-1.

The Lakers also have a 12-game home-court winning streak in the playoffs.

There was a moment of silence prior to the singing of the national anthem to honor former UCLA coach John Wooden, who passed away Friday at the age of 99. Ex-UCLA players Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton spoke about Wooden and the special qualities that made him one of the greatest coaches in the history of college basketball. Wooden coached the Bruins from 1948-1975 and claimed 10 national championships over a 12-season stretch, including a record seven straight from 1967 to 1973.

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Super Bowl XLIII Betting Odds

Super Bowl XLIII, the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Super Bowl XLIII is now set, the Arizona Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Steelers will meet each other on February 1st in Tampa's Raymond James Stadium to battle it out for the coveted Lombardi Trophy. The game kicks off at 6:00pm ET on NBC with announcers Al Michaels and John Madden covering the on-field action. Super Bowl XLIII betting odds at online bookmaker MySportsbook.com have the Steelers listed as an early -6.5 against the spread favorite.Super Bowl XLIII Betting Odds

Pittsburgh earned their passage to the big game by beating their division rival, the Baltimore Ravens, 23-14 in yesterday's AFC Championship Game. The Steelers jumped on Baltimore early, building a 13-0 first half lead, and never let up on their way to a fairly easy win. Although the Ravens did close to within two points in the fourth quarter, it never appeared as if they had enough offense to pull off the upset.

The Steelers dominating defense held Baltimore to a total of 198 yards while allowing them to convert just three third downs in 13 attempts. Pittsburgh also forced quarterback Joe Flacco into three interceptions, one of which safety Troy Polamalu returned fourty yards for a touchdown.

The Cardinals, by far the playoff team with the longest odds to reach Super Bowl XLIII, did so yesterday with a 32-25 upset of the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship. Arizona charged out of the gates and built a 24-6 halftime lead that had the Eagles venerable defense reeling. Quarterback Kurt Warner and wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald did most of the damage, connecting on three first half touchdowns.

Arizona, however, could not sustain their momentum and the Eagles took a 25-24 with 10:45 left to play in the fourth. The Cardinals, with the franchise's first Super Bowl appearance hanging in the balance, mounted a fourteen play, 72 yard touchdown drive that consumed 7:52 off the clock. Warner hit running back Tim Hightower on a short screen for the go-ahead, game clinching score that will forever live in Cardinal infamy.

MySportsbook.com's Super Bowl XLIII Betting Odds:

Pittsburgh Steelers -6.5 (-110), Over 46.5 (-110), -260 (Money line)

Arizona Cardinals +6.5 (-110), Under 46.5 (-110), +220 (Money line)

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