BOSTON -- Ray Allen put on another strong performance last night in Game Two, scoring 17 points while knocking down 50 percent of his 3-pointers (3 for 6).

He said the Lakers deserve a lot of credit for almost rallying from a 24-point deficit with 7:20 remaining in the game.

“Yeah, you have to give credit to them,” Allen said. “I think there was probably a turnover or two we would have taken back, but the momentum swung in their favor and you figure they made almost every three they took to get them, but now we have to go to their building and we have to play four quarters.

“I think tonight we played three and a half.”

Allen doesn’t really believe the Celtics let up, just that the Lakers turned it up a notch and nearly pulled off an improbable comeback.

“Honestly, there was a point I was sitting on the bench and I thought to myself that guys are going to get in the game and they’re going to play good minutes,” Allen said. “I think in the fourth quarter the only thing that could get them back in the game was turnovers, and we turned the ball over. We ran stuff that we run normally. I think we just turned the ball over and we can’t do that.”

Los Angeles forced four Boston turnovers in the fourth quarter and the Lakers shot 63.6 percent (14 for 22) in the session.

Allen said that Boston built a 24-point lead with 7:20 to because, “we attacked, we made the pass, we swung it, and everybody touched the ball. I think in the last trip in the fourth, we just held onto the ball – they played the one pass and got a lot of steals.”