Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown shared a significant embrace after leading Boston to avoid the largest collapse in an NBA Finals game since at least 1997.

Tatum scored 31 points, Brown added 30, and the Celtics fended off a fierce Dallas comeback to inch closer to their record 18th championship with a 106-99 victory over the Mavericks on Wednesday night, securing a 3-0 series lead.

Brown concluded the game with eight rebounds and eight assists, as the Celtics stretched their franchise record with a 10th consecutive playoff win. They can clinch the NBA Finals series and surpass the Lakers for the most NBA championships with a victory on Friday in Dallas.

Boston can almost put behind them the near disaster of blowing a 21-point lead with 11 minutes remaining.

Tatum commented, “Not really trying to look too much into it. The game of basketball is about runs. It's never going to go like you expected. If you want to be a champion, you have to be resilient in those situations, and we did that tonight.”

The Celtics also improved to 10-1 in these playoffs without Kristaps Porzingis, who was ruled out before the game due to a rare tendon injury in his lower left leg sustained in Game 2.

The future availability of Porzingis for the series is still uncertain, though it might not be vital. None of the previous 156 teams facing a 3-0 deficit have managed to win an NBA playoff series.

Dallas nearly completed a dramatic comeback. Boston led 91-70 following an early fourth-quarter 20-5 run before Dallas responded with a 22-2 surge, bringing them within one point with 3:30 left.

The challenge for Dallas included Luka Doncic picking up his sixth foul with 4:12 left, and although it was unsuccessful, Kyrie Irving, who scored 35 points, made a jumper to bring Dallas within one.

Tatum and Brown, with support from Derrick White, who scored 16 points, secured the victory for the Celtics. The trio combined for Boston's final 13 points, bringing the Celtics within reach of their first title since 2008 and only their second since 1986.

Boston has led 3-0 in the NBA Finals only once before, completing a sweep of the Lakers in 1959.

‘Got to Make History’

The first goal for Dallas is to avoid a seven-game series sweep for just the second time in franchise history.

“We have to make history,” said rookie Mavs center Dereck Lively II. “We need to play as if our lives depend on it.”

In what seemed like a decided game early in the fourth, the score was stuck at 93-90 for over three minutes, even during Doncic's blocking foul on a driving Brown.

The Mavs had little choice with the challenge, trying to save their superstar from disqualification.

Without Doncic, PJ Washington Jr, Irving, and Tim Hardaway Jr missed 3-pointers in the last minute as Irving's losing streak against his former team extended to 13 games.

“We had a good chance,” said Doncic. “We came close but didn’t get it. I wish I was on the court.”

An enlivened Dallas crowd geared up for its first finals game in 13 years, with Super Bowl-winning quarterback and Mavs fan Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs frequently on his feet near midcourt.

The Mavs took advantage of the momentum from their fans, establishing their largest lead of the series with a 22-9 start. Doncic and Irving both scored on drives and hit a 3-pointer each.

The Celtics responded with a 21-9 run to the end of the first quarter, aided by two Sam Hauser 3-pointers. This run was initiated by four points from Brown and a Tatum 3-pointer.

Defense dominated early in the second quarter, with Boston holding a 5-2 edge nearly six minutes in before Irving and Tatum traded 3-pointers to kickstart the scoring.

“They came out swinging,” Tatum noted. “It was to be expected. They were at home, and the crowd was behind them. We anticipated their first punch.”

Once they weathered it, the Celtics seemed poised after outscoring the Mavs 35-19 in the third quarter, despite the late Dallas rally.

After the game ended, pockets of celebrating Celtics fans remained in the mostly empty arena, seemingly beginning their celebration of the inevitable championship win.