Isaiah Thomas, Celtics Beat Bulls 108-97 to Take 3-2 Series Lead

The Boston Celtics, once down 2-0 to the Chicago Bulls, are a win away from advancing to the second round of the playoffs following a 108-97 Game 5 win at TD Garden on Wednesday night.

And while it wasn't an aesthetically pleasing performance, the Eastern Conference's No. 1 seed overcame 43.2 percent shooting from the field and 9-of-40 shooting from three to best a Bulls team that was far more efficient in both phases.

In fact, the Bulls drilled 50.0 percent of their shots from the field and 34.6 percent from distance in what amounted to a more tidy offensive display.

However, the Bulls only led by two entering the fourth quarter—and that was bad news against a Celtics team that was in desperation mode on its home floor.

Player	PTS	FGM/FGA	REB	AST	+/-
Avery Bradley	24	11/19	6	1	+11
Al Horford	21	7/11	7	9	+2
Isaiah Thomas	24	6/17	5	4	+13
Kelly Olynyk	14	5/9	5	0	+14

All told, the Celtics outscored the Bulls, 29-16, in the final frame thanks to big-time contributions from Avery Bradley, Al Horford and, of course, Isaiah Thomas:

Thomas, though, didn't always display such a dominant demeanor.

Boston's floor general failed to record his first made field goal until 42.6 seconds remaining in the first half, and he required some uniform alterations at the break to shed the bad vibes that plagued him through the game's first 24 minutes, according to ESPN.com's Chris Forsberg:

He may have also been armed with extra motivation following testy spats with Isaiah Canaan:

Thomas' closing capabilities inspired confidence over the game's final 12 minutes, but it was actually Bradley who was Boston's steadiest performer all night. And as Vice Sports' Michael Pina noted, that represented the continuation of a recent trend:

All told, Bradley finished with a playoff career-high 24 points and six rebounds while shooting 11-of-19 from the field.

On the flip side, the Bulls watched Jimmy Butler stumble for the second time in three games as he sputtered his way to 14 points on 6-of-15 shooting.

Elsewhere on the wing, Dwyane Wade nearly notched his first career postseason triple-double with 26 points, 11 rebounds and eight dimes. However, he wasn't often the most attentive on defense:

Lapses like those were prevalent throughout, and they didn't help the Bulls on a night when Robin Lopez (14 points, six rebounds, four assists, three blocks) and Canaan (13 points) both showed up with winning efforts.

Now with their backs against the wall, the Bulls will return to the Windy City facing must-win circumstances.

Game 6 will tip off from the United Center on Friday at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.