Fafnir
Nov 10, 2008 Feb 15, 2012 13 208
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Boston Heads to DC for the First of a Home and Home
by Fafnir on Jan 1, 2012 4:20 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
On New Year's Day the C's face the Washington Wizards in the first game of a home and home series. The Wizards are still searching for their first win, while the C's are looking to have their first winning streak of the season. With the Captain back in the line up everyone on the team is in a more comfortable role and the C's need to take care of a young lottery team like the Wizards. In my view this first game is doubly important for the veteran C's, the last few years they've been a poor team on the second night of back to backs.
Thoughts on the game and lineups after the jump.
4 comments
Celtics Find Home To Their Liking
by Fafnir on Dec 30, 2011 10:07 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
By taking care of the hapless Detroit Pistons. After two nail biting road games to start the season and one blow out the wrong way it was a great win for the C's. The Pistons are a bad team, and in this shortened NBA season you need to beat the bad teams, especially at home. Jermaine O'Neal finally broke out of his complete funk and Paul Pierce returned to the lineup with a well rounded effort on both ends of the floor.
Random Thoughts after the jump.
Boston at Miami, A Second Playoff Rematch in Game 2 of the Season
by Fafnir on Dec 27, 2011 3:02 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
Boston Celtics (0‐1) at Miami Heat (1‐0)
Game #: 2 of 66
Venue: American Airlines Arena, Miami
Time: 8:00 PM EST, Tuesday, December 27, 2011
TV: TNT Radio: WEEI
The Line: Celtics +9.5
In the second game of the season the Celtics and the Heat will again face a foe they met in the post season last year. Boston returns to Miami where their season ended in game five of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals coming off a loss to the Knicks in a nail biter. The Heat come back home with reams of confidence after blowing out the Mavericks in a 11 point win that was a 30+ point margin till some serious garbage time heroics by the Mavs.
Similar to Game 5 of the playoff series, the C's are facing an uphill battle due to injury, this time to Paul Pierce who is out tonight with a heel injury. As much as the Celtics will miss his offense they'll miss his ability to credibly defend LeBron James (as much as anyone can) more. Instead LeBron will lick his chops as he sees Sasha Pavlovic, Marquis Daniels, and perhaps Ray Allen guard him much of the night.
Celtics Shut Down the Lakers Late
by Fafnir on Jan 30, 2011 6:13 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
The Celtics beat the Lakers in LA today and showed why they're a different team this year. Unlike Game 7 of the Finals KG dominated the glass from start to finish.
Kobe and Pierce both carried their teams on the offensive end scoring a ton of points very efficiently. Pierce got help from his team mates as the C's shot 60% from the field overall, Kobe didn't get any help. Great win, what a way to wash away that awful game in Phoenix!
Game Notes:
- Rondo had a relatively quiet first half, but he exploded in the second half. In particular he took advantage when Phil Jackson desperate to stop Pierce moved Kobe onto the Captain. After that Rondo repeatedly beat Steve Blake to create easy buckets either for himself or for a team mate.
- Perkins played 27 minutes of very tough basketball, he combined with Glen Davis to shut down the Lakers big men for most of the game. Odom got a few drives on Davis, but other than that nothing came easy for them.
- Nate Robinson played well tonight, hopefully it means he's coming out of his shooting slump.
- The Lakers got 22% of their misses on the offensive glass, the Celtics got 31% of their misses. That's a massive win, typically you'd flip those stats around based on their overall season rankings.
- Shaq only played 12 minutes due to foul trouble, still he got 6 rebounds in his time on the floor. Having Perkins/Shaq available to play most of the C minutes makes this a much better team.
Back to Back Blues, or How Doc Checked Out Early and So Did I
by Fafnir on Jan 29, 2011 1:11 AM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
This was one ugly game. Both the Suns and the Celtics started out slowly in the first quarter, and the Suns woke up first and pulled out to a big lead. Davis & Rondo left the game with injuries, and the game just kept going without
After that the Celtics didn't pull close until late in the fourth getting within 9 points late and then the fireworks started. KG got his feet underneath Channing Frye and appeared to hit him in a "sensitive area" with his arm. It didn't look deliberate to me, as KG was looking at the ball at that point. The ensuing chest bumping resulted in a lot of free throws and KG's ejection.
After that the benches were cleared and the C's put up the white flag. The technical free throws and ejection of KG meant it was game over, frankly I thought it was over before that. The C's never gave up despite their poor play, but they just didn't have it tonight.
Up next the Los Angeles Lakers Sunday afternoon.
Celtics Defense Grinds Out a Win in Portland
by Fafnir on Jan 28, 2011 1:14 AM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
The Celtics build a 15 point lead with a few minutes to go and then the Blazers go on a huge run, sound familiar? Fortunately the Celtics had KG to come through tonight just like Ray Allen did in Boston.
The Blazers hit three straight threes and the Celtics missed three free throws to allow them to close within five points. KG came through with a huge offensive rebound on a Daniels missed free throw. After that Glen Davis stepped to the line and hit both of his free throws to push the lead back to seven.
On the next possession Wes Matthews missed a wild lay up attempt and KG secured the rebound again and drained both free throws. Game Over.
Paul Pierce left the game with two minutes to go and headed to the locker room, I'll be looking for an update on his status. Update: Pierce just stated he has a thigh bruise so scratch all my belly aching about his knee.
A few more notes on the game after the jump.
Celtics Look to Start Strong on the Road Out West
by Fafnir on Jan 27, 2011 8:48 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
Tonight is a big game for the Celtics as it will set the tone for a difficult portion of their schedule. Its the first of four games in six days all on the road out west. They play tomorrow night in a back to back in Phoenix and then travel to LA to face the Lakers on Sunday. That's three tough games in four nights, so the C's should try and separate themselves early.
Portland has been playing well despite missing Greg Oden, Brandon Roy, Marcus Camby, and several other players all due to serious injuries. The two teams played a tough game in Boston on December 1st, a 99 - 95 win for the Celtics.
On that night the Cetlics built up a comfortable 16 point lead late in the fourth quarter before giving up a 15 - 0 run by the Blazers cutting the lead to a mere point. Fortunately Ray Allen hit a huge three with 10.7 seconds left to put the C's back up 4 points and won the game.
Celts Come Alive Late to Beat the Pistons
by Fafnir on Jan 19, 2011 10:24 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
This was a very very ugly game by both teams. The C's were slow on both ends of the court for 7/8ths of the game with the exception of Shaq. He got 5 offensive boards and was extremely active, blocking shots, hitting the floor for steals, and cleaning up the glass on both ends of the court.
The C's looked discombobulated from the start as they tried to match up with the Pistons having Tracy McGrady at the point by having Rondo cover him. This worked briefly but quickly broke down after the first few minutes. McGrady took advantage of the uncertain rotations to create a ton of easy looks for his team mates. This allowed the Pistons to get back in the game and eventually take a lead into half.
With 6 minutes left in the game the Pistons took their biggest lead of the night, and the Celtics finally responded with a 9-1 run that tied up the game. From there the C's and Pistons traded buckets until Ray hit a big shot with 25 seconds left, and from their the C's got stops to win the game.
KG Returns in a Back and Forth Win Against the Magic
by Fafnir on Jan 17, 2011 10:54 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
This game was intense on both sides of the ball. KG got chippy early and the rest of the two teams picked it right up from there. The Celtics jumped out to an early lead on some hot shooting, building it to double digits in the first quarter.
Then the subs checked into the game. Ryan Anderson had a mini run pretty much by himself against Glen Davis and Luke Harangody. From then on the game was the back and forth affair that you'd expect from the last two Eastern Conference representatives in the Finals.
My final note before the jump, I missed watching KG play on this team. My favorite player is Paul Pierce, but the team just plays differently when KG is out there. He made a huge steal and got it up court to a streaking Ray Allen, that steal essentially won the game by milking 10 seconds off the clock and getting Ray Allen at the line up 3.
More notes and my thoughts on the Magic/Celtics match up after the jump.
Shaq's big night takes the Celtics past the Bobcats
by Fafnir on Jan 14, 2011 10:01 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
Shaq had his best game of the year tonight. 21 points and 5 rebounds in 36 minutes. The Celtics needed all of his activity because Semih Erden the only other healthy Celtic center was completely ineffective and collected 5 fouls in 9 minutes.
I don't love Shaq having to play so many minutes, he's far too old to be asked to shoulder such a large burden very often.
Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Rajon Rondo all put in their customary solid nights. Pierce did so despite serious foul trouble of his own. If the bench wasn't completely ineffective in the first half this game wouldn't have been so close late. The bench ended the game with a paltry nine points.
Digging Deep for a Win
by Fafnir on Dec 9, 2010 10:59 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
Man, I thought last night's game was an ugly game. The Celtics were slow and looked tired to start this game and Philly took full advantage the entire night. They got 15 offensive rebounds and ran for 22 transition points. A lot of those were in the first quarter in which they scored 32 points.
The Celtics woke up in the second quarter and pulled even, and the game was a see saw affair from there all the way to the end. The C's and the Sixers traded huge baskets and the lead until finally KG's huge lay in with 1 second left game the C's the win at 102-101.
The Celtics clearly were feeling the effects of playing last night and flying to Philly. But they hung in there and gave the Sixers their first home loss in 6 games.
Celtics Win an Ugly Game Against the Nuggets
by Fafnir on Dec 8, 2010 9:57 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
The Boston Celtics starters shot out to a big lead in the first quarter, 35 - 21. Unfortunately a five man bench unit was unable to sustain the starters strong effort and allowed J.R. Smith and Ty Lawson to shoot the Nuggets back into the game. The Denver Nuggets closed to within one point before the starters pushed it back to 7 at the half.
In the second half the Celtics slowly but surely pulled away ending the third quarter up 11 points and eventually building it to 20 point lead in the fourth quarter. After that the game went into garbage time with some late fireworks between Glen Davis and Nene being the only thing of note.
A solid win for the Celtics over a Nuggets team that was without their best player, Carmelo Anthony, who missed the game with a knee injury.
Banged Up Celtics Take on the Ailing Raptors
by Fafnir on Jan 2, 2010 5:48 PM EST
in Boston Celtics Games
on CelticsBlog
The Celtics and Raptors are both missing several key players tonight. The Captain, Paul Pierce, is out still from his knee surgery. The heart and soul of their defense, Kevin Garnett, is resting a variety of ailments and will not suit up. Finally the player that makes this team "go" whether on the fast break or with his disruptive defense, Rajon Rondo, is resting his hamstring and will not play.
The Celtics are without their number one, two, and three guys this game. (in whatever order you prefer KG/Pierce/Rondo is my own) In their place we have Tony Allen, Rasheed Wallace, and J. R. Giddens starting tonight. This leaves the Celtics with several challenges in running their sets and defending the Raptors in tonight’s game. The first of which is that their starting lineup will have 3 natural shooting guards and the second of which is that Rasheed Wallace is going to have to guard Chris Bosh for an extended amount of the game. This is not the recipe for the Celtics to break out of there three game losing streak.
The Raptors have a streak of their own going as winners of five straight contests over New Jersey, New Orleans, Detroit (twice), and Charlotte. Not the best of opponents, but a five game win streak still means that they are playing well. This Raptors team is fourth the league in offensive efficiency at 108.8 points per 100 possessions and the C's will struggle to keep up with them.
I anticipate that the Celtics are going to be running a lot of plays for Ray Allen, attempting to post Rasheed and Perkins early and often, and finally I think Eddie House is going to be asked to provide a lot of scoring off the bench.
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