at
Washington Wizards (21-38) at Boston Celtics (39-21)
Sunday, March 7
8:00 PM
Game #61, Home Game #29
TV: ESPN, CSN-NE, The Score, Comcast Sportsnet
Radio: WEEI, WJFK
TD Garden ProbableStarters PG
SG
SF
PF
C
Rajon Rondo/Ray Allen/Paul Pierce/Kevin Garnett/Kendrick Perkins
ReservesMarquis Daniels
Rasheed Wallace
Nate Robinson
Glen Davis
Brian Scalabrine
Shelden Williams
Michael Finley
Injuries Tony Allen (hip) day to day
D League Marcus Landry
Probable StartersPG
SG
SF
PF
C
Randy Foye/Mike Miller/Al Thornton/Andre Blatche/JaVale McGee
ReservesEarl Boykins
James Singleton
Quinton Ross
Nick Young
Fabricio Oberto
Shaun Livingston
Mike Harris
Injuries Josh Howard (ACL) out
Team ConnectionsRandy Foye was originally drafted by the Celtics in the 2006 NBA Draft
Mike Miller played for Doc Rivers from 2000-03 in Orlando
Nick Young and Brian Scalabrine are former USC Trojans
Randy Foye, Mike Miller and Shelden Williams were teammates in Minnesota during the 2008-09 season…
Josh Howard and Marquis Daniels were teammates in Dallas from 2003-06..
Wizards Assistant Coach Sam Cassell played for the Celtics from 2007-09 and was a member of the 2008 Championship team..
Kevin Garnett played for Wizards coaches Flip Saunders
and Randy Wittman in Minnesota
Rasheed Wallace also played for Saunders in Detroit.
Key Matchups vs
Rajon Rondo vs Randy Foye
As in most games, the point guard matchup is key. Foye has a height advantage but Rondo has a quickness advantage.
vs
Ray Allen vs Mike Miller
Mike Miller is a scorer and is shooting 55% from the floor. Ray will need to contain Miller while hitting his shots to make Miller work on defense.
Honorable MentionNate Robinson vs Earl Boykins
This is a battle between two mighty might point guards and should be fun to watch. This may be the one and only time where Nate actually has a height advantage.
Game Notes The Celtics are currently 2-0 against the Wizards during the 2009-10 season; The Celtics swept the season series 3-0 against Washington in 2008-09
Rajon Rondo is leading the C’s with an average of 19.0 points and 11.5 assists in the two contests this season against Washington
Andray Blatche has averaged 13.0 points per game against the C’s this season
It marked the first time since the 1981-82 season that the C’s had swept the season series against the Wizards
The Celtics are leading the all-time series 169-101 with the Celtics 86-37 at home
This is the 3rd of 4 meetings between these two teams with the Celtics winning the first 2 in Washington. The Wizards team that the Celtics will see in this game bears little resemblance to the team they played earlier in the season. Gone are Arenas, Crittendon, Butler, Jamison and Haywood.
The The Wizards are 4-6 in their last 10 games and just 9-19 on the road. The Celtics are 7-3 in their last 10 and 17-11 at home. The Celtics should have Michael Finley in uniform for this game. It will be interesting to see how Doc works him into the rotation.
The Wizards have lost 2 games in a row while the Celtics are on a 3 game win streak. The Celtics have started to show some of the swagger that we saw in the past two season which been missing for much of the season. Celtics fans are hoping that this is just the beginning of a big win streak. The Wizards did a big salary dump and are jockeying for position in the lottery.
But, as with any team in the NBA, it seems to get personal when they play the Celtics. The Celtics can't take this team for granted and must come out ready to play.
Keys to the Game Defense - We are finally seeing a more consistent defensive effort from the Celtics over their last 3 games. They have to continue to to make defense a priority because defense wins games and championships.
Rebound - The Celtics are one of the worst rebounding teams in the league and because of that they give up way too many second chance points and fast breaks. They need to make a concerted effort to crash the boards.
Play 48 Minutes - The Celtics have been better recently about playing consistently. They need to continue to come out strong and not let up until the end. Celtics fans would love to see Gino again in this game.