NBA: Boston 89, Cleveland 73

Boston -- Paul Pierce had 19 points and Ray Allen 16 Thursday to lead Boston to an 89-73 victory over Cleveland and a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference Semifinals

The Celtics again made it tough on Cleveland star LeBron James, who scored 21 points but needed 24 shots to do so. James has made less than 20 percent of his shots from the field in the opening two games of the series.

Cleveland grabbed a seven-point lead after one period, but the Cavaliers' hopes diminished when center Ben Wallace suffered a bout of dizziness and had to leave the game in the first quarter. He almost collapsed after walking toward the sideline.

Wallace returned to the bench after being examined, but he did not play again.
Boston quickly took control in the second period and held Cleveland to just 27 points during the middle two quarters. The Celtics led by as many as 24 in the second half.

Kevin Garnett had 13 points and 12 rebounds for the Celtics, who will travel to Cleveland for Game 3 Saturday.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International.