Maine Celtics, Neemias Queta blow out OKC Blue in Game 1 of G-League Finals 

It was utter domination from start to finish, as the Maine Celtics took a 19-point lead over the Oklahoma City Blue in the first quarter and never looked back.

Now, they’re one win away from the first G-League championship in franchise history.

JD Davison led the way with 23 points and 12 assists, while Neemias Queta – less than 24 hours after signing a standard deal – had 20 points (9-11 FG), 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks.

“[We] just came out with a sense of urgency, and an energy, especially defensively,” Maine Celtics head coach Blaine Mueller said of the team’s hot start.

The Celtics were extremely connected all night, holding the Blue to just 35.1% shooting, and of note, only one OKC player shot better than 42% from the field. It certainly didn’t help OKC that Keyontae Johnson injured his back just 4 minutes to play and missed the rest of the night.

Maine was active defensively, finishing the game with 11 steals and 8 blocks (in comparison, OKC had just 5 stocks).

“We’re a defensive-oriented team,” said Drew Peterson, who grabbed three steals. “To have a guy like Neemy in the back line to protect the rim, and then we get out and run… JD is such a good distributor and we all play our roles very well.”

Neemias Queta said the defense has improved tremendously over the last few weeks as the team has gelled and gotten to know each other’s tendencies. Backing up Queta is Kylor Kelley, who was the leading shot-blocker in the G-League this season.

“It also helps a lot that our second unit is really good defensively, so we can keep going and maintain the same level of defense during the whole game,” Queta said. “That’s a big key for us.”

Notably, after struggling for the first two postseason games, Peterson had a breakout first quarter, finishing with 13 points in the opening period as the Celtics took a 33-14 lead. He ended the night with 20 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, and a game-high +/- of +25.

Mueller said Peterson played a more assertive game, while Peterson credited his teammates for feeding the hot hand and allowing different guys to step up each night.

“It’s just so huge that we have guys that can really fill their role on our team,” Peterson said. “That’s so important to the organization here, and even in Boston, that’s something they emphasize top to bottom. It trickles down here with guys that fill a role and can have their big night on any given night — so with some guys off, the next guy steps up.”

Jordan Walsh added 15 points (including 3-4 from three), 6 rebounds, 3 steals, and 2 blocks – capped off by a breakaway windmill dunk that put OKC away for good after a fourth quarter Blue run cut the lead to 15.

“Those big moments – I’m glad I got to steal a couple of those passes, and the team was happy. I was loving it,” Walsh said. “Just to be able to put the team away in those moments, it’s a great feeling.”

Queta said he hopes he and Walsh can be teammates for a long time. With both now inking standard multi-year deals with the Celtics, that hope could be reality.

“Jordan has the ability to make a couple of plays that turn the momentum of a game, and that was one of them,” Queta said. “To be able to grow around him, and seeing him develop this year, during his rookie year, has been amazing. I feel like he’s got so much more potential for what we can do, so I’m excited to see him grow, and hopefully in the future, we keep on playing together for a long time.”

The atmosphere at the Expo was electric from tip-off until the final buzzer sounded. Mueller noted you have to give fans something to celebrate; last night’s game had no shortage of those moments.

Mike Zarren, VP of Basketball Operations, and Allison Feaster, VP of Team Operations and Organizational Growth, were both at Sunday’s Eastern Conference Finals win over the Long Island Nets. This time, it was Brad Stevens who was sitting by the Maine Celtics bench to watch the franchise’s first-ever G-League Finals game.

“Brad’s phenomenal – phenomenal leader, phenomenal coach, phenomenal president,” Mueller said, adding that his boss’s presence on the sideline made him a little nervous. “Supporting our guys, it’s really cool for him to come up here especially with Neemy just signing, to be here for him, Jordan Walsh, JD [Davison], Drew [Peterson].”

Players were excited by the win postgame, but overwhelmingly acknowledged that the job is not done. Game 2 of the best-of-three series will be in Oklahoma City on Thursday night at 8 pm ET, and if the Celtics win that one, they won’t even have to come back to the Portland Expo. If they lose, they’ll be back in front of their home crowd on Monday hoping to seal the deal.

“We’re not overly celebrating – we got one more to go – but it’s exciting for us,” Peterson said.

A lot of the team’s success has had to do with the selflessness of the roster and their willingness to put the team ahead of their own individual performance. A lot it has to do with the veterans in the locker room, guys like Tony Snell, who only played 13 minutes last night but continues to mentor the younger guys on the team.

“Tony is a big part of my growth,” Walsh said. “Our lockers are right next to each other. We’re probably the closest on the team – always talking, always with each other, always doing something. To be able to take information from him, it’s definitely someone I look up to. He’s been where I want to go.”

Queta credited each individual player’s prioritization of winning for helping cultivate such a selfless environment.

“All the guys on the team, they’ve been a part of winning teams, winning cultures, whether it’s in college, high school, wherever it was, in the league, back in the day,” Queta said. “We all understand the sense of urgency that we need to have, and how we have to sacrifice for each other in order for us to get a championship.”

After starting the season with an 11-11 record, few could have predicted the Maine Celtics would now be one win away from a championship. But consider Jordan Walsh one of the early believers.

“We have a good team, good staff, so it’s no surprise that we’re in the position we’re in,” Walsh said. “There’s so many good people surrounding myself. It’s no surprise.”