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Memphis Grizzlies (12-11) at Boston Celtics (12-10)
Sunday, February 5
12:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #23, Home Game #15
TV: NBA-TV, CSN-NE, SSO-MEM,
Radio: WEEI, WMFS
TD Garden 
Probable Starting Matchups Point Guard 
vs
Rajon Rondo 15.0 PPG, 5.10 RPG, 9.4 APG 1.7 SPG
Mike Conley 12.9 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 7.0 APG, 2.6 SPG
Shooting Guard
vs
Ray Allen 14.9 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 2.9APG, .564 3P%
Tony Allen 10.8 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 1.0 APG, .429 3P%
Small Forward 
vs
Paul Pierce 17.8 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 5.5 APG, .433 FG%
Rudy Gay 18.3 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 2.0 APG, .452 FG%
Power Forward 
vs
Kevin Garnett 13.1 PPG, 7.20 RPG, 2.8 APG, 1.1 BPG, 1.000 3P%
Marreese Speights 7.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 0.8 APG, 0.4 BPG
Center
vs
Jermaine O'Neal 5.9 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 0.5 APG, 1.4 BPG
Marc Gasol 15.1 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 2.8 APG, 2.3 BPG
Celtics Reserves Brandon Bass
Chris Wilcox
Greg Stiemsma
Avery Bradley
E'Twaun Moore
JaJuan Johnson
Mickael Pietrus
Sasha Pavlovic
InjuredKeyon Dooling (hip) day to day
Marquis Daniels (ankle) doubtful
Jermaine O'Neal (knee) game time decision
Paul Pierce (hip) probable
Grizzlies Reserves Dante Cunningham
OJ Mayo
Hamed Pondexter
Josh Davis
Jeremy Pargo
Josh Selby
Sam Young
InjuriesDarrell Arthur (Achilles) out
Zach Randolph (knee) out
Team ConnectionsTony Allen played for the Celtics from 2004-10 and was a member of the 2008 NBA Championship team
Darrell Arthur and Paul Pierce attended the University of Kansas
Ray Allen and Rudy Gay attended the University of Connecticut
Zach Randolph and Chris Wilcox both played for the Knicks during the 2008-09 season.
Game Notes The Celtics welcome old friend Tony Allen and his Grizzlies to the Garden. The Celtics have faced 4 Western Conference foes this season and have lost to all 4 of them. They have lost to the Suns, Thunder, Mavs and Hornets. The Grizzlies will be their first western opponent since seeming to find their groove after the return of their Captain.
These two teams split the series last season with each team winning on the other's court. The Grizzlies the same number of wins as the Celtics but have one more loss. The Grizzlies are 5-5 in their last 10 games and are coming off a Friday night loss to the Thunder. The Celtics are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have won 3 games in a row, including a tough grind out victory against the Knicks in their last game. The Celtics are 8-6 at home while the Grizz are 5-8 on the road.
The Grizzlies will be missing Zach Randolph, which is a break for the Celtics. That's the good news. The bad news is that they will still have Marc Gasol, who will be a very tough matchup for an ailing Jermaine O'Neal (or KG and Brandon Bass, if JO can't go). Tony Allen will be covering Ray Allen, which is sure to limit Ray's easy looks. This is a game that the Celtics can win as long as they come out focused and play hard. They also can't forget their defense and rebounding.
Key Matchups vs
Kevin Garnett vs Marreese Speights
Jermaine O'Neal vs Marc Gasol
The matchup between the Celtics bigs and the Grizzlies bigs will be key in determining the winner. The Celtics get a break with the Grizzlies' regular starting power forward out. Randolph is big and strong and gives every team problems, but would give the Celtics more problems because of how thin they are up front. KG should have an advantage against Speights and hopefully he will exploit it. JO had an MRI on his knee and is listed as a game time decision. Gasol is a tough matchup and the Celtics will need a strong presence in the middle so hopefully Jermaine will be able to provide that. If JO can't go, it will fall to Brandon Bass to man the middle next to KG.
vs
Rajon Rondo vs Mike Conley
It was great to see Rondo back against the Knicks, but he was definitely rusty. If you have any doubts, ask Mickael Pietrus whose head he almost took off with a pass. As I've said many times, as Rondo goes, so go the Celtics. Hopefully Rondo will shake off a bit more of the rust and play aggressively and have a strong game in this one.
Honorable Mention Paul Pierce vs Rudy Gay
Pierce has played very well in recent games and the Celtics need that to continue for them to continue winning. Gay is a great young player and Pierce will need to play him aggressively on the defensive end as well as make him work by being aggressive on the offensive end.
Keys to the Game Rebound - Rebounding is very important in limiting fast break points and second chance points for the Grizz. The Grizzlies are very good at getting second chance points off of offensive rebounds and putbacks. The Celtics must be aggressive in crashing the boards. The team that wins the battle of the boards usually wins the game.
Take Care of the Ball - The Grizzlies are among the best in the league in forced turnovers and steals and they are also very good at scoring off those turnovers. The Celtics must take care of the ball and avoid careless passes and lapses in focus or the Grizzlies will make them pay. Rondo must especially concentrate on his passes and ball handling as Conley averages 2.6 steals a game.
Defense - The team that works hardest on defense will be the team that wins. The Grizzlies are a good defensive team and will limit the Celtics' easy looks. The Celtics will need to match their defensive intensity if they want to win this game.
Be Aggressive for 48 Minutes - When the Celtics are passive and settle for jumpers and don't swarm on defense they end up in trouble.
The Celtics need to come out strong and play aggressively until the final buzzer. They can't allow the Grizzlies to build a lead because their defense will make it difficult to come back.
X-Factors Western Conference and Home Court
The Celtics have 6 losses at home and 4 of them are to Western Conference teams. The Celtics have yet to beat a team from the West. They need to focus on playing Celtic ball and let the home crowd give them the extra boost to get the win.
Topic: Grizzlies (12-11) at Celtics (12-10) 2/5 (Read 44854 times)