Hey, remember when the knock on the Celtics was their depth? Remember when everyone assumed Ghidorah would play great and then all hell would break loose when the second unit came in? Think Cleveland is remembering those predictions wistfully?

The first quarter last night was a hangover from Game One. Ghidorah was still struggling (we were ready to call for a wheelchair to escort Ray Allen off the floor, if not a gurney). LeBron James was still struggling. The only guy on the floor who looked any good was the Cavs' Zydrunas Ilgauskas.

But nowadays, when the second unit comes in, the Garden PA system should play that cavalry song. Sam Cassell, Leon Powe, and James "Our Playoff MVP So Far" Posey came to the rescue, keeping the Cavs firing bricks (pictured above) and bringing a welcome burst of energy to the C's offense. What had been a 12-point Cleveland lead quickly turned into a 89-73 Celtics rout, as the Celtics held LeBron and company to 12 in the second quarter and 15 in the third. The energy from the bench trickled up to the starters, too, as Pierce and Ray both rediscovered their shots in the second half.

Now, of course, comes the tough part: closing the deal on the road. Cleveland's cause wasn't helped by the fact that an allergy-ridden Ben Wallace schlumped off the court after four minutes, never to return (not that he would have scored 17 anyway). Plus, they'll be at home, where the Ohio fans can take a lesson from Atlanta, that the C's aren't invulnerable. On the bright side, Cleveland has discovered the legend of Gino (great article, keep reading till you get to the part about Leon Powe).

The Sox got back to their brilliant-starting-pitching ways after a one-game hiccup. Josh Beckett K'd eight Tigers and gave up only six piddling little singles in the Sox' 5-1 win. With Beckett throwing the way he was, the Sox clinched the game early, with a 2-run Varitek single and an Ellsbury sac fly in the 2nd. But just for good measure, Kevin Youkilis popped his third home run in two days; he'll miss Comerica Park. The road show hits Minnesota tonight, with Jon Lester up against Boof Bonser.

Photo from Flickr's esparta.