This team loses this game if Pierce played one second less than he did. Yes, this is just another January game but, this is not just another January game. They've been going bad. They need a couple of wins for their psyche. This was, believe it or not, an important game for them given the scheduling.
The Celtics have played anywhere between 2 and 7 games more than most of the other top ten to twelve teams in the league. They've played 5 games more than Cleveland, 4 games more than LA, 2 games more than Orlando, 4 games more than SA, 7 games more than NO, 6 games more than Phoenix, 4 games more than Portland and 5 games more than Detroit.
And now they are playing two home and aways in a row in 6 days. Those home and aways are like playoff basketball because of the familiarity they breed.
I find the whole scheduling for this team to be very strange. How can they have played 5-7 games more than any other team this far into a season. 5-7 GAMES!!!!!! That means that those teams have had 5-7 more off days or days of practice. Add to that that they just finished 8 roadies in 10 games over in 18 days and they've had a long western trip. That's as tough as they get. No wonder they look tired.
The people doing the early season scheduling certainly weren't Celtics fans thats for sure.