Star’s Name Is Larry, but He Is Not Bird : NBA playoffs: Nance scores 32 points for Cavaliers in 114-112 overtime victory over Celtics. Series is tied.

BOSTON —  Not even Larry Bird could save this day for the Boston Celtics.

Bird had a chance to tie Sunday’s playoff game with the Cleveland Cavaliers but missed a layup with two seconds left in overtime.

Reggie Lewis, who finished with 42 points, got the rebound and missed. The Celtics still had one more chance, but John Bagley’s desperation shot at the buzzer fell far short.

Thus, the Cavaliers came away with a 114-112 victory that evened the Eastern Conference semifinal series at two games apiece.

Bird had not played since April 3 because of a bad back.

“I went out and did what they asked,” he said. “Overall, I thought we had a lot of chances to win the game. We just couldn’t do it.”

Cleveland’s Larry Nance, who scored 32 points, including six on long jumpers in overtime, said: “He’s not the same Larry of old, but he looked well and created some problems.”

Bird spent the first quarter on the bench and wound up playing only 17 minutes. When he finally entered the game, it was to a loud ovation.

Bird finished with four points, hitting on one of five shots. He had two rebounds and two assists.

“Bird playing didn’t change a thing for us,” Cavalier Coach Lenny Wilkens said. “We know what kind of a player he is. We were prepared for him.”

Nance, who has played against Bird often in his 11 NBA seasons, was the star this time. Playing 49 minutes, he made 13 of 16 shots and all six of his free throws. He also had seven rebounds, two assists and two blocks.

“We got the win, and now we have to go home and back it up,” Nance said. “This is definitely a big win for us. We kept our poise and concentration. The guys kept getting me the shots, and I got the ball to fall.”

Boston Coach Chris Ford said his team had opportunities, but “the defense wasn’t there today.”

Mark Price added 24 points for Cleveland, Brad Daugherty had 20 and John (Hot Rod) Williams scored 18.

Cleveland, which had lost 11 of 14 previous games at the Garden and was 2-31 on the parquet floor since Bird entered the NBA in 1979, blew a 13-point third-quarter lead, then battled back from a five-point deficit in the fourth quarter.

“We just didn’t come ready to play,” said the Celtics’ Lewis, whose 42 points equaled his personal best as a pro. “Scoring a lot of points is great when you win, but when you lose it doesn’t matter. I missed a couple of big shots down the stretch.”

Regulation ended 103-103, after Williams missed two free throws with 8.2 seconds remaining and Lewis’ shot at the buzzer was partially blocked by Craig Ehlo.