This was the earlier Rajon Rondo of the NBA playoffs.

This was the one who declared himself the best point guard in the league. Not the one who came up lame in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

This was the all-around Rondo, who had a series of huge plays late, including a jumper to ice the game.

Rondo's play and the explosive first half by Ray Allen proved too much for the Lakers as the Celtics pulled away with a 103-94 victory in Game 2 of the NBA Finals at Staples Center Sunday.

"Tonight was unbelievable," said Celtics coach Doc Rivers of Rondo. "He was special tonight."

Rondo finished with 19 points, 10 assists, 12 rebounds and two steals. This marked his second triple-double this postseason and the fifth in his postseason career.

Though Rondo stole the show late, the first half was all about sharpshooter Allen.

After being plagued by foul trouble in Game 1 and scoring just 12 points, Allen absolutely thrashed the Lakers with his silky smooth shot. He finished with a game-high 32 points, 27 of which came in the first half. He also set an NBA Finals record for most 3-pointers in a game by going 8-for-11 from deep.

"It's definitely right up there," said Allen of setting the record and where this performance ranks in his career. "(It's) great to be able to look back on it and say I did that."

With the victory, the Celtics even the series at 1-1 and take homecourt advantage away from the Lakers. The next three games will be in Boston with Game 3 on Tuesday.

Though this game was decided in the final minutes, it seemed as if momentum was in favor of the Lakers. After trailing by as many as 14 points in the first half, they managed to tie it up 72-72 by the end of the third quarter.

There were several plays by the Lakers in the middle of the fourth quarter. One was a defensive stand. The Celtics had four cracks under the Lakers basket and couldn't convert. Andrew Bynum had a pair of blocks during that sequence. Then there was Kobe Bryant's double clutch bank shot. He was fouled too by Allen and converted the 3-point play. Then a series of turnovers by the Lakers hurt them down the stretch.

"We weren't playing smart," said Bynum, who tied a career-playoff high with 21 points and recorded six rebounds to go along with seven blocks. "We were playing bad basketball.

"We turned the ball over, it was that simple. Then Rondo is pushing it and Rondo hits an elbow jumper."

Los Angeles did have a 90-87 lead with 5:21 left in the game, but Boston closed out the game on a 16-4 run.

Rondo hurt the defending champs the most down the stretch. He pulled down rebounds (four offensive) like a younger Kevin Garnett. He got inside the Lakers defense for easy lay-ins. He scored eight of the team's 10 points at one point, including a key 16-foot jumper from the left elbow.

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