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Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« on: March 17, 2011, 03:24:29 PM »

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Boston Celtics (48-18) at Houston Rockets (35-34)
Friday, March 18
8:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #67, Road Game #32
TV:  CSN-NE, FSH, NBA-LP 763/764
Radio:  WEEI, KILT
Toyota Center



Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard
  vs 
Rajon Rondo vs Kyle Lowry

Shooting Guard
   vs 
Ray Allen vs Kevin Martin

Small Forward
  vs 
Paul Pierce vs Chase Budinger   

Power Forward
  vs 
Kevin Garnett vs Patrick Patterson 

Center

  vs 
Nenad Krstic vs Chuck Hayes 




Bench  
Jeff Green
Sasha Pavlovic
Troy Murphy
Carlos Arroyo
Avery Bradley
Glen Davis
Delonte West

Injured
Shaquille O'Neal (knee) out
Jermaine O'Neal (knee) out
Von Wafer (calf) out

Bench
Courtney Lee
Jordan Hill
Goran Dragic
Brad Miller
DeMarre Carroll
Hasheem Thabeet

Injured
Yao Ming (ankle)  out
Terrence Williams (abdominal)  questionable
Luis Scola (knee) questionable 

Team Connections
Chuck Hayes, Patrick Patterson and Rajon Rondo all attended the University of Kentucky
Von Wafer played for the Rockets during the 2008‐09 season
Assistant Coach Mike Longabardi worked for Houston from 2003‐07
Jermaine O’Neal and Brad Miller were teammates in Indiana from
2001‐04
Goran Dragic played with Shaquille O’Neal in Phoenix during the 2008‐09 season
Hasheem Thabeet and Ray Allen both attended the University of Connecticut
Celtics Assistant Coach Roy Rogers and Rockets Assistant Coach T.R. Dunn both attended the University of Alabama..
Terrence Williams and Troy Murphy were teammates in New Jersey earlier during the 2010‐11 season

Game Notes
This is the second and final meeting between these two teams.  The Rockets beat the Celtics in the Garden 108-102, giving the Celtics one of their 6 losses at home.  The Celtics are fighting with the Bulls for the top spot in the East while the Rockets are fighting to make the playoffs, just 2.5 games out of 8th in the West. 

The Celtics are finally starting to get healthy with Delonte finally back and the promise of the O'Neals soon to follow.  The second unit is rounding into shape and was a big reason for the Celtics win over the Pacers.    Now, the starters have to get focused and rested for the Celtics to actually show what they can do.   In the meantime, we never know whether we will see the team that beat the Bucks and the Pacers or the team that lost to the Clippers and the Nets. 

The Celtics have lost the last 2 overall to the Rockets, both in Boston and they have a 4 game win streak going in Houston.  Both teams are 7-3 in their last 10 games and the Celtics are coming off a win while the Rockets have a 2 win streak going.  The Celtics are 19-12 on the road while the Rockets are 19-14 at home.

If the bench continues to gel and the team regains focus, they should be able to get a win in this game.   This being the first of a back to back set, hopefully they will take care of business early and get the starters some rest. 

Key Matchups
  vs 
Rajon Rondo vs Kyle Lowry
As Rondo goes, so go the Celtics.  According to KG, Rondo has been playing in pain and my guess is that it is the plantar fasciitis that has been bothering him much of the year.  He didn't score against the Pacers but did make some great passes and had assists.  If he is injured,  Doc should rest him up for the playoffs and give Arroyo and West some extra playing time. 

  vs 
Ray Allen vs Kevin Martin
Martin is the focal point of the Rockets attack and is averaging 22.8 points per game.  Ray will need to try to limit Martin's effectiveness while also looking for his own shot.  Running Martin off of a ton of screens should slow him down a bit.  Hopefully the starters will get off to a better start than they have in their last couple of  games. 

Honorable Mention
Kevin Garnett vs Patrick Patterson
Patterson is a young and up and coming player for the Rockets.  Hopefully KG and will come out focused and take advantage of this matchup from the beginning.   KG should have a big game and the Celtics need to look for him on offense. 

Keys to the Game
Defense - The Celtics must keep their defensive mindset.    Defense wins games and it will win a championship.  The Celtics' defense took a step back at the trade deadline, but they are beginning to develop chemistry but that trend needs to continue as the Celtics defense builds toward the playoffs.     

Rebounding -  Rebounding is second to defense in importance in winning games.   The Celtics need to put out effort to crash the boards and prevent the Rockets second chance points and fast break opportunities.   They also give themselves extra possessions by grabbing the offensive rebounds.   Big Baby has had 14 and 9 rebounds in his last 2 games and it would be great if he can continue that work on the boards.   

Ball Movement - The Celtics are tough to beat when they keep the ball moving and find the open man.  It is when the ball gets stagnant and players try to do too much and the ball stops moving that the Celtics struggle to score and look vulnerable. 

Be Aggressive -  Too many times  we see the Celtics get beat to loose balls and rebounds.  the Celtics have to be aggressive in going after loose balls, grabbing rebounds and taking the ball to the basket.  The more aggressive team will get  more respect from the refs and they also take some steam out of the other team by attacking and being aggressive.   

Play 48 Minutes - The Celtics can't afford to come out sluggish or to slack off after the half or down the stretch. They have to come out strong and play for 48 minutes without let up.  The bench has to continue where the starters leave off and give the team a boost when they come in.  Lately, the bench has been doing their part, now the starters have to get back on track. 

X-Factor
Revenge
The Rockets came into the Garden and beat the Celtics.  They need to play hard and not allow the Rockets to sweep the series.

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #1 on: March 17, 2011, 03:57:46 PM »

Offline letsgoblue86

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Nice work FL, all i can say is that i'm glad aaron brooks isn't on the rockets anymore.

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #2 on: March 17, 2011, 04:16:16 PM »

Offline barefacedmonk

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TP FL.

Chase Budinger and Kevin Martin need to be kept in check..do that and we shouldn't have much problem beating them.
"An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching." - M.K. Gandhi


Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #3 on: March 17, 2011, 04:53:54 PM »

Offline Megatron

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Going to be another tough game, Rockets always play hard, no matter what.

Thank god they dont have the Celtics killer Aaron Brooks anymore though, that guy demolishes us almost every time he plays us.

We need to lock down K-Mart and Budinger, limiting those two will be key.

I sense a Rockets three fest, if Scola is out they are going to be super perimeter oriented since Hayes and the other scrub they have at PF dont have offensive games.

We need to go inside to Krstic and KG as much as possible, they have huge height advantages over the Rockets.

Without Battier to pester Pierce, he should be able to dominate this game. We have advanatages at every spot, Lowry isnt athletic or very quick, so even though Rondo is slumping he should be able to defend him well.

Good thing this isnt a back to back, C's win this one by 10.

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #4 on: March 17, 2011, 05:18:10 PM »

Offline Fafnir

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Going to be another tough game, Rockets always play hard, no matter what.

Thank god they dont have the Celtics killer Aaron Brooks anymore though, that guy demolishes us almost every time he plays us.

We need to lock down K-Mart and Budinger, limiting those two will be key.

I sense a Rockets three fest, if Scola is out they are going to be super perimeter oriented since Hayes and the other scrub they have at PF dont have offensive games.

We need to go inside to Krstic and KG as much as possible, they have huge height advantages over the Rockets.

Without Battier to pester Pierce, he should be able to dominate this game. We have advanatages at every spot, Lowry isnt athletic or very quick, so even though Rondo is slumping he should be able to defend him well.

Good thing this isnt a back to back, C's win this one by 10.
Aaron Brooks Career Averages:
25.3 MPG 12.6 PPG 1.9 RPG 3.6 APG .41 FG% .364 3P%
26.1 MPG 15.5 PPG 1.6 RPG 4 APG .524 FG% .531 3P%

http://bkref.com/tiny/n5gnU

He's shot well from the field, but I think Celtics killer is a moniker handed out far too lightly.

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #5 on: March 17, 2011, 06:12:50 PM »

Online celticinorlando

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another should be win esp with aaron brooks gone

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #6 on: March 17, 2011, 10:30:53 PM »

Offline jdz101

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Cmon Cs let's get a win  :o


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

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #7 on: March 17, 2011, 10:38:55 PM »

Online FLCeltsFan

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The Bulls won again tonight.  That puts them back up half a game over the Celtics.  Bulls play the Pacers tomorrow night.  If they win again tomorrow and the Celtics lose that puts them up 1.5 games.  The Celtics NEED to win this game as I doubt the Pacers beat the Bulls. 

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #8 on: March 17, 2011, 10:44:00 PM »

Offline tgreanier

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I agree a win is big here, but I do not think HCA is that critical this season...as long as they can have a better record than the Lakers. I still think the Lakers are coming out of the West (my faith in the Spurs is very limited and I think Oklahoma City needs one more season before they are the "real deal").

But, as I watched the entire 1986 Finals again this week, I am used to watching Boston beat Houston, so I would not mind seeing the trend continue.
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Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #9 on: March 18, 2011, 12:53:13 PM »

Online FLCeltsFan

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Official Report
Jason Phillips
Phillips has been in the league for 8 years. He has officiated 380+ regular season games. Before landing in the NBA he worked for the CBA 6 seasons, the WNBA 3 seasons, 2 years in the Dallas Pro-Am, and 5 seasons at the high school level in Texas. Phillips has officiated only one other game for the Celtics, the last Orlando game in which the Celtics shot 34 free throws to 16 for the Magic. The Celtics are 7-3 over their last 10 games with Phillips as a ref while Houston is 5-5 with Phillips over their last 10. His home W/L record this season is 33-21.

John Goble
John Goble is a relatively new referee in the NBA in his 3rd season in the league. He’s officiated 208+ regular season games and 2 playoff games. Seems odd that Goble already has called a couple of playoff games with just 3 years of experience and others have been in the league 12 years or more and haven't cracked the playoff rotation yet. The Celtics are 4-1 this season and 7-3 over their last 10 games that Goble has officiated. The Rockets are 8-2 in their last 10 games with Goble. His home W/L record this season is 37-19.

Josh Tiven
This is Tiven's first full season as an NBA Referee. He was part of a group of NBDL refs last season who officiated several games as part of an initiative aimed at preparing top prospects to move up. He also spent time calling games in the WNBA and college before moving to the NBDL. The Celtics are 2-1 so far this seaaon with Tiven as an official. The loss was the Celtics 108-102 loss to the Rockets at the Garden. The Celtics are also 3-2 in all 5 games with Tiven. The Rockets are 4-1 in all of their 5 games with Tiven. His home W/L record this season is 29-19.

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #10 on: March 18, 2011, 07:52:06 PM »

Offline makaveli

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Bulls are down 12 and are not looking good. A great chance for Celtics to take the lead again(for good I hope)
what doesn't kill you makes you stronger

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #11 on: March 18, 2011, 07:56:07 PM »

Offline ACF

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TP 4 the GT.

Go grab that number one spot, C's.





                  Go Celtics!

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #12 on: March 18, 2011, 08:21:18 PM »

Offline Megatron

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C's arent on a back to back.

Houston without Scola and Brooks.

We should win this one big. We need to guard them on the perimeter because they are going to do nothing but launch jumpshots and threes this game, they have no inside presence.

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #13 on: March 18, 2011, 08:29:12 PM »

Offline CelticSooner

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If the Cs can hold Budinger under 20 I'll be ecstatic. They cannot start slow out of the gate either.

Re: Celtics (48-18) at Rockets (35-34) 3/18
« Reply #14 on: March 18, 2011, 08:39:32 PM »

Offline zerophase

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Houston Boston games are always very close... or has been the last couple years minus the time we broke their 22 game win streak. This should be a good game.

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