DALLAS — For a few minutes in the fourth quarter of Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday night, it looked like the Boston Celtics’ bad habits would come back to haunt them. The Dallas Mavericks, who appeared finished when they trailed by 21 points with 10 minutes to go, roared back with a 22-2 run, putting Boston’s lead in peril and threatening to make this a series.

Celtics Reclaim Control

But just when things looked their bleakest, the Celtics flipped the script, holding the Mavericks to one field goal over a five-minute span, and claimed a 106-99 victory for a 3-0 series lead. Boston is now one win away from a record-setting 18th NBA championship — one the Celtics can capture Friday in Game 4 at American Airlines Center.

Jaylen Brown’s Leadership

“Experience is the best teacher,” said Jaylen Brown, who finished with 30 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists in 41 minutes. “All year long we’ve been hearing about the Celtics are the past, for the last six to eight months, that’s all we’ve been hearing is all the different shortcomings we’ve had in the past. This is a new team, you know what I mean. We’ve learned from those experiences. And in these moments, you can see that we learned from it. We stepped up to the plate, and we found a way to win.”

Early Dominance and Dallas’ Response

It looked like Boston had found a way much earlier, having responded to a 25-12 spurt by the Mavericks over the opening seven minutes — a run that saw Kyrie Irving, who finished with 35 points after combining for 28 in the two games in Boston, get going for the first time in the series. The Celtics’ 79-45 burst over roughly the next 29 minutes allowed them to take a commanding 91-70 lead with 11:07 remaining.

At that point, Dallas appeared to be staring at another loss despite Boston’s Kristaps Porzingis sitting out Game 3 and his status in doubt moving forward because of an unusual tendon injury in his left leg sustained in Game 2.

Dallas’ Resurgence and Boston’s Final Push

But just as quickly as Boston had established control, Dallas rediscovered itself. As Boston went 1-for-11 and committed three turnovers over the next 7:57, Dallas pulled to within 93-92 on an Irving layup with 3:37 remaining despite playing without Luka Doncic, who fouled out a few seconds earlier. However, things started to swing back in Boston’s direction, as a Brown putback of a Jayson Tatum miss was followed by a Derrick White 3-pointer and a Tatum dunk, pushing the Celtics’ lead back to six points.

“I think just we had some turnovers, which allowed them to get out in transition,” White said. “And just a couple of things that we’ve been doing really well, we kind of just let go of the rope for however many minutes that was. It seemed like, what, two minutes, they cut it to two, three or something. It happened quick, and we just settled back down. Understand it’s a game of runs, and we just trust what we do.”

Celtics’ Road Dominance

In the past, it might have been a moment when the Celtics let go of the rope and allowed the Mavericks to close the game out. But Boston persevered and improved to 7-0 on the road in these playoffs. It is 21-7 on the road over the past three postseasons — the best winning percentage over a three-year span in NBA history, breaking a tie with the 1991 to 1993 Chicago Bulls.

Contributions from the Bench

The Celtics did it by getting contributions from across the board. Backup center Xavier Tillman stepped into the rotation and played 11 impactful minutes, hitting a corner 3, grabbing 4 rebounds, and recording 2 blocks, including one against Doncic. Sam Hauser went 3-for-4 from 3-point range and was a game-high plus-16 off the bench after going 0-for-5 from 3 in Game 2.

Conclusion

With their 106-99 victory in Game 3, the Boston Celtics are on the cusp of making history with an 18th NBA championship. Their resilience and ability to adapt under pressure have set them apart, showcasing a new and improved team ready to etch its name in the annals of NBA history. The stage is set for what promises to be an exciting Game 4 at the American Airlines Center on Friday.