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Boston Celtics (2-1) at Atlanta Hawks (1-2)
Monday, April 28
8:00 PM ET
Round 1, Game #4, Away Game #2
TNT, CSN HD
Philips Arena 
Probable Starting Lineup PG 
Rajon Rondo PPG 12.3 RPG 4.70 APG 7.0 EFF + 21.33
**SG 
Ray Allen PPG 15.3 RPG 3.30 APG 3.3 EFF + 14.33
SF 
Paul Pierce PPG 15.7 RPG 3.00 APG 4.3 EFF + 15.33
PF 
Kevin Garnett PPG 22.3 RPG 10.00 APG 3.3 EFF + 25.67
C 
Kendrick Perkins PPG 7.0 RPG 5.70 APG 0.3 EFF + 9.67
** Playoff statistics
Off the BenchEddie House, James Posey, Leon Powe, Big Baby Davis, Tony Allen, PJ Brown, Sam Cassell, Brian Scalabrine, Gabe Pruitt
Injury ReportScot Pollard, ankle, out
Probable Starting LineupPG
Mike Bibby PPG 9.7 RPG 2.30 APG 3.3 EFF + 5.67
SG
Joe Johnson PPG 17.7 RPG 5.30 APG 4.7 EFF + 14.67
SF
Marvin Williams PPG 11.7 RPG 4.30 APG 0.3 EFF + 9.00
PF
Josh Smith PPG 15.3 RPG 8.00 APG 3.7 EFF + 19.00
C 
Al Horford PPG 15.3 RPG 11.00 APG 3.7 EFF + 23.67
Off the Bench:Josh Childress, Zaza Pachulia, Salim Stoudamire, Mario West, Jeremy Richardson, Solomon Jones, Acie Law
Injuries Speedy Claxton, knee, out
Key Matchups
vs
Paul Pierce vs Marvin Williams
Actually, this should be Paul Pierce vs the Hawks team. After the way Al Horford taunted Pierce at the end of game 3 and Pierce's reaction, I expect him to have a very big game in this one. Horford may very well regret getting Paul Pierce mad.
Rajon Rondo vs Mike Bibby
After being out played in games 1 and 2, Mike Bibby came back in game 3 to play very well and he showed why many thought the point guard matchup would be either even or in Atlanta's favor. Rondo has to front Bibby and keep him from getting his team into their offense. There will be a lot of pressure on the Celtics young point guard in this game.
Honorable MentionKevin Garnett vs Josh Smith
Smith seemed to get to the hoop at will for an assortment of dunks. Part of that was the fact that Perk played only 18 minutes and Leon Powe played only 6 minutes and that left the Celtics without an enforcer in the middle to help KG keep the Hawks away from the basket. Big Baby is a good defender and a wide body, but he doesn't box out and doesn't defend like Perk and Powe do. KG will need to earn his DPOY award as he looks to keep Josh Smith from scoring in this one.
Keys to the GameDefense The Celtics defense was nowhere to be found in game 3 as they allowed the Hawks to shoot 47% from the field and 56% from beyond the arc. For a team that was #1 in every defensive category during the season, this was unacceptable. Defense is the key to winning the championship and the Celtics need to find theirs again quickly.
Coaching This is where the coaches earn their money. The Hawks made adjustments in their game and it kept the Celtics off balance the entire game. Now, Doc and Tom Thibodeau must get the Celtics to see what went wrong and to make adjustments so that it doesn't happen again. They will need to adjust their defense to the Hawks style of play and get the Celtics to implement the adjustments.
Rebound Rebounding becomes even more important in the playoffs because it is an indication of the desire and effort that a team puts into a game. The Celtics were out-rebounded 43-35 in game 3 and they need to bring the effort to beat the Hawks to rebounds and so limit their 2nd and 3rd chance baskets.
Team Play Each Celtic seemed to be trying to win the game by themselves instead of playing the team ball that has made them so successful. They weren't moving the ball and they weren't playing team defense. They need to play as a team if they want to win.
X-Factor Bench Play The Celtics bench didn't get it done in game 3. They scored just 11 points with 7 of those by Posey. Sam Cassell was 1 of 4 with 3 of those shots being ill advised shots. The bench needs to play well and come through for the team to give the starters a rest while keeping a high level of play. They have to do a better job of scoring.
Topic: First Round Game 4 Boston Celtics @ Atlanta Hawks 4/28/08 (8:00 PM TNT, CSN) (Read 79772 times)