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The Boston Red Sox had plenty of time to go out Saturday night, grab a nice dinner in upscale Scottsdale, stop in a nightclub for a few drinks.
But after their 2-1 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks in the afternoon, they were in no hurry to go anywhere.
The team stayed in its visiting clubhouse at Chase Field and watched – and celebrated – the Boston Celtics’ dramatic 104-103 victory over the Miami Heat, setting up Game 7 in Boston and threatening to go where no North American sports team has gone since the 2004 Red Sox.
Those Red Sox trailed the New York Yankees 3-0 in the American League Championship Series and are still the only team in baseball history to overcome such a deficit. Boston went on to sweep the World Series over the St. Louis Cardinals and end its 86-year title drought.
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So, guess who plans to be in attendance at the TD Garden on Monday night rooting on those hometown Celtics?
“I think there’s a good chance that there’ll be a lot of people going,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora, who will be accompanied by closer Kenley Jansen and a host of others.
Now, the Celtics are threatening to become the first team in NBA history to accomplish the feat.
“We’re following man,” Cora said. “It’s fun. I tell these guys from the get-go that you have to enjoy the whole experience. This city’s different, with all due respect to the other ones, but watching the Bruins, watching the Celtics, what they’ve done so far is eye-opening, right? Understanding how hard it is to win the series, and to win games in a row, in an environment that’s a lot different than baseball.”
There are no aces to step to step on the mound who can shut down the opposition single-handedly in an NBA game. You run out the same players, design different strategies, and hope it works.
“The NBA is different,” Cora said. “You don’t have a Pedro (Martinez). A Schill (Curt Schilling). A Derek Lowe, that has a baseball for 100 pitches, and you can dominate somebody.
“There, you saw what happened in the end, right? Marcus Smart took the last shot. You prepare. You defend. You probably know every play that is called. It’s about execution. I don’t want to say they got lucky, but you know, they went to rim. (Jayson) Tatum was on one side. (Derrick) White was on the other side.”
White grabbed Smart’s missed jumper, put it back up, and it dropped through the net as the horn sounded.
“In the playoffs, preparation and execution comes into play,” Cora said, “but at the same time the ball has to bounce your way. It just seemed like it bounced the Heat’s way a little bit there, and the ball bounces into White’s hand.”
Now, after overcoming all of the adversity, when everyone counted them out, the Celtics have a chance to make history.
“I do believe there’s weight on culture, there’s weight on chemistry,” Cora said. “That’s something you can’t measure. Us, as leaders of an organization, you try to make it as fun as possible, as cohesive as possible for stuff like to happen. I think the family aspect helps too. Make it a family event, regardless of the situation, enjoy it as much as possible, regardless of where you’re at. That way, you can actually disconnect yourself from what’s really happening, and actually enjoy.
“They’re one win away from pulling this off. (Monday) should be crazy.”
And with the Red Sox having an off-day Monday, and a suite available to them, there will be no shortage of players and Red Sox staff members who vow to be on hand at the Garden.
“I want to see that,” Jansen said. “I want to be a part of watching. It’ll be a great thing for Boston to witness this event.
“Anything can happen in a Game 7, but those guys have it man. They have it all.”
Follow Bob Nightengale on Twitter: @Bnightengale
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