NBA Finals: As it happened: Boston Celtics v Golden State Warriors - Game 3

Thanks, sports fans. That’s the end of the live blog of game three of the NBA Finals. Have a great afternoon and don’t forget to visit smh.com.au for all the news, sports, entertainment and opinions you could ever need.

Boston can take a huge step towards the title by winning in Game 4 on Saturday. A 3-1 buffer will have the Warriors worried. That all sounds great, but watch out for the wounded Warriors. Stephen Curry won’t take this lying down and Klay Thompson and Draymond Green also know what it takes to win championships.

Curry and Tatum played like the superstars they are. The difference in this game was the play of Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart. The duo combined for 51 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists.

Draymond Green needs to be the player he can be if the Warriors are to win this series. The pantomime can go on the shelf for a while. By all means, be boisterous and be yourself, but channel your play into lifting your teammates and lifting yourself.

That’s it for game three. Boston win 116-100. In the end, their offence was too much for the Warriors to handle. If they can’t get back to their defence from Game 2 they’ll be trailing the series 3-1 after Game 4.

The Warriors have taken their stars (Curry and Thompson) off the court. They think this one is over. Well, it is now as the Celtics lead by 16 inside the last two minutes. Boston lead 116-100

Marcus Smart overpowers Steph Curry and the lead is out to 14 points with 2:20 remaining. Golden State needed everything to go their way from here. Unlikely. Boston lead 114-100

After a pile-up on the floor, Draymond Green picks up his sixth foul and his night is over. In the pre-game notes we mentioned how Green can be his own worst enemy at times. He finishes with two points and three assists. Boston lead 112-98

Boston guard Marcus Smart in Game 3.Credit: Getty

We’re down to the final six minutes and the Warriors need to get out of a nine-point deficit. Make that 11 points following that superb driving lay-up from Jayson Tatum. Boston lead 107-96