Boston Celtics again pushed to brink after unraveling in fourth quarter of Game 5 vs. Golden State Warriors

SAN FRANCISCO — So many things went in the Boston Celtics' favor in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry didn't make a 3 for the first time in a postseason game. After struggling with his shot all series long, Jayson Tatum had a good shooting night.

And, for a change, the Celtics not only didn't get demolished by the Warriors in the third quarter — but outplayed Golden State during the frame.

But, after all of that, the feeling emanating from the Celtics was one of regret, as Boston scored five points over the first eight minutes of the fourth quarter and watched Golden State pull away for the 104-94 victory, giving the Warriors a chance to close out the series Thursday night at TD Garden.

«Obviously we're a little discouraged after having such a good third to come out in the fourth and not execute like we needed to,» Al Horford said. «We felt like we had opportunities, kind of started playing like we were playing earlier in the game. That's definitely, you know, tough.

»Our backs are against the wall. This is the time that we look at each other in the eyes and we got to figure it out. We have an opportunity now. Got to figure it out. There's no tomorrow for us."

It appeared there might be a tomorrow, somehow, for Boston after Game 5 — despite how terribly the Celtics began the game. While the Warriors came out of the gates like a house of fire, sending the Chase Center into one round of rapturous applause after another with their frenetic play, the Celtics spent the opening minutes moving around the court like it was a regular-season game in February, rather than Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

Turnovers — the telltale stat of Boston's postseason — reared their ugly head once again. The