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Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« on: May 02, 2011, 08:51:54 PM »

Offline FLCeltsFan

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Boston Celtics (0-1) at Miami Heat (1-0)
Tuesday, May 2
7:00 PM ET
Playoff Game #6 Road Game #4
Round 2, Game 2
TV:  TNT, TSN2
Radio:  WEEI, WAXY
American Airlines Arena 






   
PG:  Rajon Rondo................................................ SG: Ray Allen


C:  Jermaine O'Neal

 
SF:  Paul Pierce.................................................PF:  Kevin Garnett

Boston Bench Mob
Jeff Green
Glen Davis
Delonte West
Nenad Krstic
Carlos Arroyo
Avery Bradley
Sasha Pavlovic 
Troy Murphy
Von Wafer

Injured
Shaquille O'Neal (calf/old age/Danny Smokescreen)  day to day



 
PG:  Mike Bibby.............................................. SG:  Dwyane Wade


C:  Zydrunas Ilgauskas

 
SF:  LeBron James ..................................................PF:  Chris Bosh

Miami's Reserves
Mario Chalmers
Juwan Howard
Eddie House
Jamaal Magloire
Dexter Pittman
Mike Miller
James Jones
Eric Dampier
Joel Anthony

Injuries
Udonis Haslem (foot)  day to day



Game Notes:

The Celtics have to come into this game angry and ready to play. If they don't, they don't deserve to win.  After being treated unfairly by the refs and punked by the Heat, the Celtics need to have a chip on their shoulders and come out aggressive right from the beginning.   

After bragging about how much better the Celtics bench was than the Heat bench, Big Baby finished with just 4 points and 4 rebounds and a whopping -21 in the +/- column.  Jeff Green must be more aggressive on the boards.  There is no excuse for a guy who is 6'9" tall and who has his athleticism and quickness to play over 21 minutes and not get a rebound.  Delonte was just 3-9 from the field, missing not one but 2 dunks.   One of the keys for this game is for our "superior" bench to play much better. 

The Celtics played like they were the young and inexperienced team in game 1, allowing the Heat to be the more aggressive and physical team.  They reacted to the heat instead of being the instigators and they got caught reacting and that frustrated them even more.  They have to stay composed and execute their game plan without allowing themselves to get frustrated by the lack of calls or by the physical play of the Heat. 

Both teams can point to areas that they can improve.  Both Bosh and LeBron could play better.  No one on the Heat bench played well other than James Jones.  Udonis Haslem is considered day to day and may make his return to the team sometime in this series.  For the Celtics, KG, Rondo and Pierce can all play better.  The Celtics bench certainly can play better.  And Doc has said that Shaq should play in either game 2 or game 3.   Chances are that James Jones doesn't shoot that well in every game.  Hopefully the refs aren't as blatant in calling the game one sided again. If the Celtics play with some intensity and fire and they avoid getting caught up in mind games, they have a good chance of winning this game, regardless of the officiating. 

Key Matchups
  vs 
Rajon Rondo vs Mike Bibby
Rondo was hampered much of game 1 with foul trouble after picking up 3 quick fouls early in the first half.  He played only 29 minutes in the game but while he was in the game, the Celtics outscored the Heat by 7.   While he was sitting, the Celtics struggled to find their offense.  Rondo had just 7 assists for the game and none in the first half.  The Celtics as a team had only 18 assists, which is way below their average.  Rondo shot only 30% in spite of taking all his shots in the paint.  He also was not using his speed to his advantage, allowing the much slower Bibby to stay with him on defense.  The bottom line is that the Celtics need a more Rondo-like game from their point guard if they want to win this game. 

  vs 
Ray Allen vs Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Wade went off for 38 points in game 1 while Ray Allen put up 25 of his own.  The Celtics will need to defend Wade better and not allow him to get the open looks that he was able to get in game 1.  Ray needs to stay hot for the Celtics and they need to set screens to get him open as he is the Celtics most efficient scorer at this point. 

  vs 
Kevin Garnett vs Chris Bosh 
The Celtics once again were able to keep Bosh from being a factor in the game.  He scored just 7 points but did pull down 12 rebounds.  The Celtics weren't able to take advantage of this because KG played just as poorly.  He shot just 3-9 for 6 points to go with 8 rebounds.   The Celtics need KG to be more aggressive and to be a factor if they want to win this game.  They have to work on getting KG going early and hopefully he will hit his shots in this one. 

Honorable Mention
Paul Pierce vs LeBron James
The Celtics held James to a pedestrian 22 points on 8-19 shooting.  Paul Pierce did a good job defending him but sacrificed some of his own offense in doing so.  He struggled on offense early but was heating up in the second half just about the time when he was tossed from the game.   There is no question that both James Jones and Dwyane Wade should have gotten flagrant fouls for their contact with Pierce, but even when the calls are that one sided and terrible,  Pierce has got to keep his cool.   He should expect more of the same in game 2 and not allow it to take him out of his game.  Jones and Wade were clearly the aggressors and Pierce got caught retaliating.  He dodged a bullet by avoiding a suspension and may not be as lucky the next time.  He must not let the refs or the Heat get under his skin and he has to let his game do the talking instead of his mouth. 

Keys to the Game
Take Care of the Ball - The Celtics must limit their turnovers as the Heat will turn them into fast break points.  Wade in particular is good at making teams pay for their turnovers.  The Celtics had 18 turnovers in game 1 which the Heat turned into 23 points.  They have to take better care of the ball.     

Rebound - The Celtics have to limit the Heat's second chance baskets and fast breaks by crashing the boards.  The amount of effort put into winning the rebound battle often follows through to the other areas of the game.  The rebounding was even at 39 each in game 1 but the Celtics need to try to out rebound the Heat, not just match them. 

Defense -  The Heat have tried to make defense their calling card this season.  The Celtics have to make defense a priority as well. Defense wins games and defense wins championships.  If the Celtics can't get stops, they won't win the game.  The Celtics allowed 99 points on 47% shootin in game 1 and they need to do a better job on defense. 

Be Aggressive
-  The Celtics must be the more aggressive team.  In game 1, the Heat were the aggressors and got into the Celtics' heads because of it.   The Celtics have got to be aggressive in getting to the basket and not settle for jumpers all game.  They also have to be aggressive in diving for loose balls and winning the 50-50 battles, something they didn't do in game 1.  The Celtics can't afford to give up possessions by failing to hustle after loose balls and after rebounds.  They also must take it to the basket especially if the jumpers aren't falling.  The Celtics have to be the more physical team and not be the team reacting to the physical play of the Heat. 

Team Ball -  The Celtics need to play team ball.  When they move the ball and make the extra pass and find the open man and play as a team,  they are tough to beat.  When they revert to hero ball and there is little ball movement and they settle for quick shots, they rarely win.  Rondo is a big part of keeping the ball moving and setting up the offense and he was limited in game 1 because of foul trouble.  He has to be more aggressive and run more and keep the ball moving.  When Rondo has fewer than 10 assists, it's a sign that the ball isn't moving and they aren't playing Celtics basketball.   

Bench Play - The Celtics once again got little from their bench.  The Celtics got just 23 points and 11 rebounds from their bench.   Jeff Green again came away with zero rebounds.  The Heat doesn't have much of a bench but James Jones outscored the Celtics bench all by himself with 23 points.  If the Celtics bench can't hit their shots, they could at least play defense.  There is no way that James Jones should be allowed to shot 5-7 from beyond the arc, mostly on wide open shots.  He also was 10-10 from the line.  Big Baby, Delonte, and Green must play better.   If they can't get the job done, Doc needs to turn elsewhere.  Try Arroyo instead of West.  Give JO more minutes- he certainly can play more than 20 minutes.  Unfortunately, we don't have much choice but to play Green and pray that he somehow finally gets it. 

Stay Composed - The Celtics allowed the Heat and the referees to rattle them.  They let the Heat be the more physical team and instead of being the instigators the Celtics reacted to them.  They played like they were the younger and reactionary team rather than the veteran team that they are.   We can probably expect more of the same from the referees and the Heat feel that they can get to the Celtics again and the Celtics can't react.  They have to play their game and stay poised, especially down the stretch when things are sure to get chippy again. 

X-Factors
Execution and Officiating
The Celtics didn't execute their game plan in game 1.  They got off to a sluggish start.  They walked the ball up the court and didn't make the extra pass to find the open man. There was too much one on one play in the first half especially.  The Celtics need to execute on both offense and defense. 

 We saw what a difference the officials can make in game 1.  The rebounds were even, The Celtics had one more assist and 3 fewer turnovers than the Heat.  The Celtics had a slightly lower field goal percentage but took more shots.  They had a slightly higher 3 point percentage and made 3 more 3 pointers than the Heat. 

  Jermaine O'Neal was called for a flagrant foul that wasn't one and both James Jones and Dwyane Wade committed flagrants that weren't called, which led to Pierce's frustration. And, the Heat shot 32 free throws to 18 for the Celtics.   The officials had their imprint all over game 1 and will probably do so in game 2 as well.  But, if the Celtics execute and play their game, they can win in spite of the officials. 

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2011, 08:53:09 PM »

Offline celticinorlando

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big game for boston. they really need to get this one

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2011, 09:15:44 PM »

Offline Celticsfan336

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looks to be the biggest game so far of the year. CANT WAIT!

seriously though, this is the game. like, legit. THIS IS THE GAME. huge game. did I mention this is a big game? I would never count out the celtics, but still....depending on how game 2 goes...you have to expect the heat steal one in boston because the refs and/or superstars. hopefully we go back to boston 1-1, win game 3, and make believe game 1 never happened :)

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2011, 10:08:15 PM »

Offline JT11

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I agree. I won't go so far as to call it a must-win ... but it's pretty darn close.

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #4 on: May 02, 2011, 10:16:43 PM »

Offline Redz

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Apparently they are planning bypassing bringing in a singer for the national anthem in favor of having the crowd sing it as a unit.
Yup

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #5 on: May 02, 2011, 10:23:58 PM »

Offline hpantazo

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Apparently they are planning bypassing bringing in a singer for the national anthem in favor of having the crowd sing it as a unit.

and I thought we were cheap here in boston

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #6 on: May 02, 2011, 11:22:10 PM »

Offline ACF

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TP. Go Celtics!

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #7 on: May 03, 2011, 01:02:02 AM »

Offline jdz101

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"Shaquille O'Neal (calf/old age/Danny Smokescreen)"

hehe good stuff


how much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck was chris bosh?

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #8 on: May 03, 2011, 01:05:34 AM »

Offline JT11

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Apparently they are planning bypassing bringing in a singer for the national anthem in favor of having the crowd sing it as a unit.

Er - what crowd?

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #9 on: May 03, 2011, 02:40:31 AM »

Offline JoT

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Apparently they are planning bypassing bringing in a singer for the national anthem in favor of having the crowd sing it as a unit.

Er - what crowd?
You didn't know, Miami has legit fans now. They actually show up on time and they wear white for support.
 Besides that the bench has got to step up and no more excuses coming from me. Big baby has to play like last playoff big baby and Jeff and Delonte have to step up because this starting 5 can only take this team so far doing most of the work.

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #10 on: May 03, 2011, 03:44:42 AM »

Offline j804

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I agree. I won't go so far as to call it a must-win ... but it's pretty darn close.
I will this is a MUST WIN if we want any good shot at winning the series.

and like the poster above said it's time to hold everyone accountable no more excuses go out there and get it done
"7ft PG. Rondo leaves and GUESS WHAT? We got a BIGGER point guard!"-Tommy on Olynyk


Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #11 on: May 03, 2011, 04:08:01 AM »

Offline kw10

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You didn't know, Miami has legit fans now. They actually show up on time and they wear white for support.


lol, Miami had "legit" fans too back in 2006 when they made to finals.

Anyway, Celtics better win, I'm missing my uni classes for tomorrow's game lol
Anything is possible!!!

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #12 on: May 03, 2011, 06:07:46 AM »

Offline bopna

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Can we just shut down Miami's 3 point gunners...is that too much to ask. James Jones is very one dimensional and all he will do is shoot lights out from three. shut him down as we have given the Heat 23 bench points from Jones alone for a guy who just averages 6 points a game. 

And a note to KG...Is Z-Bo really that much better than you.( I guess the answer is yes coz the guy who we constantly mock here in CB has been leading his team in overachieving here in the playoffs.) 6 points is not going to cut it and I hope you wake up from your slump or else this would be a short series.

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #13 on: May 03, 2011, 07:52:33 AM »

Offline aporel#18

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TP's all around, I didn't do it in game 1  :(

I'll check back to give some deserved TPs, first of all to FL for the great job.

Can't wait for the game, we are the better team and it's not close, so I want the win tonight!

Go Celtics!!!

Re: Celtics (0-1) at Heat (1-0) 5/3 Round 2 Game 2
« Reply #14 on: May 03, 2011, 08:05:44 AM »

Offline FLCeltsFan

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Apparently they are planning bypassing bringing in a singer for the national anthem in favor of having the crowd sing it as a unit.

Er - what crowd?
They reported on Miami radio just before game 1 that they were going out into the street and recruiting people (including homeless people), handing them white shirts and letting them in to fill up the arena.  Now that's pitiful.