Game 1, 1980-81 NBA Finals
May 5, 1981 · Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
Game 1, 1980-81 NBA Finals: BCBoston Celtics 98–95 Houston Rockets, at Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts on May 5, 1981.
Larry Bird's 21 rebounds anchored a narrow Boston win to open the series.
Box score
| BCBoston Celtics starters | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | PTS | REB | AST |
| Larry Bird | 18 | 21 | 9 |
| Tiny Archibald | 12 | 0 | 5 |
| Robert Parish | 16 | 10 | 1 |
| Cedric Maxwell | 10 | 9 | 5 |
| Chris Ford | 13 | 3 | 1 |
Bench (10+ points): Gerald Henderson (11)
| HRHouston Rockets starters | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | PTS | REB | AST |
| Robert Reid | 27 | 8 | 3 |
| Moses Malone | 13 | 15 | 3 |
| Billy Paultz | 14 | 7 | 4 |
| Mike Dunleavy | 6 | 2 | 7 |
| Tom Henderson | 11 | 2 | 3 |
Bench (10+ points): Calvin Murphy (16)
Sources
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
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