‘They outplayed us’: Steve Kerr, Warriors see fortunes reversed against Celtics at TD Garden

Thursday’s NBA Finals rematch between the Celtics and Warriors had it all.

There was a double-digit comeback in the second half by Boston. 

A clutch three-point equalizer by Jaylen Brown in the last minute of regulation. 

Numerous gut-check buckets in overtime. 

And a casual half-court heave from Steph Curry that swished through the net. 

Shortly after the final seconds drained off the clock at TD Garden, one reporter asked Warriors coach Steve Kerr if Boston’s 121-118 victory was the “Game of the Year” in the 2022-23 season.

Kerr didn’t take long to offer his retort.

“Not for us,” Kerr said. “Not the way we closed the game. Not the Game of the Year.”

Seven months ago, the parquet floor was a place of revelry for Kerr and the Warriors. Golden State became the first team to clinch an NBA Finals title on the TD Garden court, defeating a talented Celtics club marred by late lapses in execution.

On Thursday, the Warriors found their roles reversed against their Eastern Conference opponent.

All things considered, Kerr was pleased with the play of his team. Well, for the first three quarters.

“Just the final couple of minutes,” Kerr said of his issues with the Warriors’ play. “We played hard and guys competed and I loved the effort. We showed what we can do on both ends of the floor. But you got to close the game and we just didn’t close the game.”

A late-game pushback by Boston was expected by Kerr and his coaching staff. But the manner in which the Celtics forced overtime will keep the reigning champions up at night.

Jaylen Brown had a rough shooting performance (6-for-18) in his return from an adductor strain. But Golden State’s inability to account for the wing beyond the arc proved costly with under 20 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

A fake-out three-point attempt from Marcus Smart drew two defenders on him, but Kerr bemoaned his team’s lack of awareness of a lurking Brown — ready to sink the game-tying shot.

“In that situation, the whole gameplan is no threes,” Kerr said. “And there was no timeout. They didn’t take a timeout. They just came down and played. So that’s where guys have to be able to decipher that on the fly. You can debate fouling there. It’s pretty early to foul.

“Generally it’s kind of under eight [seconds], under 10, whatever. Everybody’s going to debate that forever for this game. But what you can’t do is give up an open three, and so instead the whole idea is switch everything and run them off the line and don’t let them line up a three. So we had a defensive breakdown that led to the opening.”

By the time both teams trudged into overtime, Kerr could only shrug his shoulders as clutch baskets from Smart and Jayson Tatum iced the game for Boston.

“They made some tough shots. Smart and Jayson both made some tough shots. We fouled a couple times,” Kerr said. “But we were right there. We were hanging in and I didn’t think there was anything, any key in the overtime. It was just they outplayed us.”

Thursday’s win won’t erase the sting of last year’s championship defeat for Boston. Nor will Kerr and the sub-.500 Warriors overreact over a regular-season defeat.

There is plenty more basketball to be played. And a potential reunion in the playoffs offering a chance at revenge for both parties.

“I love the effort. I love the grit. … All in all, I love the level of competition, the way that guys play together,” Kerr said of his team. “We looked like what we are — which is a championship team. But we didn’t close the game. Better now than in the playoffs.”

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