Pistons (19-16) at Celtics (19-15) Game #35 1/6/16

[FLCeltsFan]

  at 
Detroit Pistons (19-16) at Boston Celtics (19-15)
Wednesday,  January 6, 2016
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #35, Home Game #19
TV: CSNNE, FS Detroit, NBA-LP 753(xfinity), 755(DTV)
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 105.1 FM
TD Garden



Probable Starters

PG: Isaiah Thomas
SG: Evan Turner
SF: Jae Crowder
PF: Amir Johnson
C:  Kelly Olynyk

Celtics Reserves
Jared Sullinger
Jonas Jerebko
Terry Rozier
James Young
Jordan Mickey
Tyler Zeller
David Lee
RJ Hunter
Marcus Smart

Injuries
Avery Bradley (hip) out
Isaiah Thomas (thumb) probable

Head Coach
Brad Stevens




Probable Starters

PG: Reggie Jackson
SG: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
SF: Marcus Morris
PF: Ersan Ilyasova
C:  Andre Drummond

Pistons Reserves
Joel Anthony
Aron Baynes
Steve Blake
Reggie Bullock
Spencer Dinwiddie
Darrun Hilliard
Stanley Johnson
Anthony Tolliver
Brandon Jennings

Injuries
Jodie Meeks (foot)  out

Head Coach
Stan Van Gundy 

Game Notes
The Celtics return home from evening the series with the Nets to face the Detroit Pistons.   The Celtics are currently 7th in the East with the Pistons in the 8th spot just half a game back.  The Celtics are 5 games behind 1st place Cavaliers and tied record-wise with the Pacers, who are 6th but lead the season series with the Celtics and so get the higher seed.

The Celtics are 9-9 at home and have actually been playing better on the road than at home with a 10-6 road record.   The Pistons are 7-11 on the road and have lost 7 of their last 10 games in Boston.  Both teams are 5-5 in their last 10 games.   Both teams won their last game and are looking for their second straight win. 

This is the 3rd meeting between these two teams this season.  The series is tied 1-1 with each team winning one game in Detroit.  The Pistons won the first meeting 119-116 on 12/16 while the Celtics evened the series with a 99-93 win on 12/26.  They will meet one more time in February at the TD Garden.

Avery Bradley is expected to miss his second straight game with a hip injury.  Isaiah Thomas missed Tuesday's practice with a minor thumb sprain but is expected to play in this game.  He will be a game time decision.   Brad Stevens shook up the lineup for the last game against the Nets with Evan Turner and Kelly Olynyk in the starting lineup.  I'm assuming that he will stick with this lineup for this game, but I could be wrong. 

The Pistons will be missing Jodie Meeks who is not expected back until February.  Brandon Jennings has returned from the Achilles injury that kept him out of the first two games against the Celtics.  Marcus Smart is back in the lineup for the Celtics after missing both games against the Pistons in December. 

Key Matchups
vs
Isaiah Thomas vs Reggie Jackson
Jackson is very quick and is always a threat to drive to the basket.  He is averaging 19.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 0.9 steals. The Celtics will miss Avery Bradley's defense on Jackson and it will be up to the combo of Isaiah Thomas, Evan Turner and Marcus Smart to slow him down on the offensive end. 

vs
Kelly Olynyk vs Andre Drummond
Drummond is a beast in the paint on both ends of the court and is averaging 18.1 points, 16.0 rebounds, 1.8 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game.   Last season in the 3 games against the Celtics, he averaged 22.3 point and 16.7 rebounds.  In the two games this season, he is averaging 19 points and 17 rebounds.   Drummond's weakness seems to be from the line where he is shooting just 36.5%.   The Celtics will have their hands full trying to slow him down on offense and on the boards.  I'm not so sure that Kelly is strong enough to defend Drummond. 

Honorable Mention
Evan Turner vs Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
In the first game between these two teams, Caldwell-Pope scored a career high 31 points and he hit 4 clutch free throws down the stretch.   He came back to earth with just 6 points in the second game.  But he is capable of having a big game and so the Celtics need to stay with him on defense.

Keys to the Game
Run, Run, Run - The Celtics have proved that when they run and move the ball up the court quickly, good things happen.  When they over dribble and slow the game down, they struggle all the way around. They need to push the ball on every opportunity and push the pace,  but also play under control. 

Be Aggressive - The Celtics need to be aggressive in going for loose balls, rebounding and defending. They also have to be aggressive in going to the basket and not settle for jumpers. Good things happen when they get into the paint.  They have to be hungry and play like the team that wants it more.  They have to play aggressively for 48 minutes. 

Rebound - Rebounding takes effort and desire.  The Celtics will need both in order to beat the big front line of the Pistons to the rebounds.  The Pistons are 3rd in the league in rebounding with 47.7 per game. The Celtics will have to work extra hard to beat them to the boards.

Defense- The Celtics need to play tough team defense, especially in the paint. It doesn't matter how much they score if they can't stop the Pistons from scoring more.  Both teams pride themselves on defense.  The Celtics are 8th in the league allowing 99.0 points per game while the Pistons are 10th allowing just 99.4 points per game.  The Celtics must play tough team defense and get stops especially at the end of the game. No let ups!

Play as a Team - The Celtics have to play as a team and move the ball to find the open man.  They have to defend as a team and rebound as a team.  Hero ball rarely wins games and so they need to have each other's backs and play together.   The Celtics are best when they spread the scoring and play as a team. 

Move the Ball - The Celtics must move the ball and find the open man. They struggle to score when the ball stops moving. In the Celtics most recent  losses they averaged 18 assists.  They are 5th in the league in assists with 23.8 and it's not a coincidence that they win when their assist total is higher and they lose when it is lower.

X-Factors
Home Factor - Usually playing at home means that the team will get a boost from the home crowd and it gives them an advantage.  But the Celtics are a curious team in that their record on the road is better than their record at home.   Since March 21, 2015,  the Celtics have a 17-6 road record second only to the Golden State Warriors.  Hopefully they can get it together and start winning at home as well.

Officiating -  The officiating is always an x-factor in every game. Will the refs let them play or will they call every little bit of contact. Will they call it evenly or will they favor one team or the other.  In the first game vs the Pistons, the Celtics took just 24 free throws to 43 for the Pistons and the Pistons got the benefit of quite a few questionable calls.   In the second game, the Celtics win, The Pistons took 25 free throws to 23 for the Celtics and the officiating was a bit more even.  This time?  Who knows?

[csfansince60s]

TP FLCeltsfan. Comprehensive, upbeat thread as usual.

Going to the game!!! So glad they won last night. I wouldn't have been too thrilled about going to the game if they had lost three in a row, especially if we had lost two to the Nets.

Hack-a-Drummond? He should learn to shot FTs. Whatever it takes.

Go Cs!!!

[FLCeltsFan]

TP csfansince60s for being the first to post in the game thread.  Have fun at the game!  Should be a good one.  Hopefully they can bring that road mindset home and give you a win!!   

Go Celtics!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

[CelticsFanFromNYC]

If KO is for sure starting, BIG game for him imo... This could be a big  influence on his minutes going forward.  Pistons obviously will have to go zone. See if C's take advantage of it

[tarheelsxxiii]

Frist?

[hwangjini_1]

Thanks once more FLC for the thread....though I confess to having no idea whatsoever as to what those things are at the top of the thread. 

Tp for the thread as ever. I really enjoy these game threads. You are terrific.

Goooooo celtics!!! 

[jdz101]

Thanks once more FLC for the thread....though I confess to having no idea whatsoever as to what those things are at the top of the thread. 

Tp for the thread as ever. I really enjoy these game threads. You are terrific.

Goooooo celtics!!! 

Portable picnic tables.

FL's celtics merchandise picture collection is limitless.

[CroCorvus]

Just defend Jackson under the pick (hate when IT  guard his player all the way to the half court) and try limit Drummond with boxing out (Sully had some succes against him lately but I feel Kelly will do it ;-)), and we got this like woah. C's up!

[apc]

Bradley will be missed.
Jackson, Pope, Jennings can all put up lots of buckets.

[BudweiserCeltic]

Very worried about our starting big men against Drummond, but by the same token if Lee is out of the rotation it should prevent that Lee-Olynyk pair we threw at him off the bench which was a disaster as well.

So, hopefully there won't be much switching when Drummond is up. I'm having a tough time recalling how Amir faired when he guarded Drummond, so curious at how that will go. Got the feeling it wasn't all that well, but we'll see.

One big thing is that Crowder needs to do a better job on Morris. Morris has been killing him. Worth mentioning that Morris was hitting some tough shots as well, but I know Crowder should be able to make his life more difficult.

If Rozier is dressing, I hope he gets some minutes considering all the offensive oriented guards the Pistons may field today. Young will be eaten up.

[BudweiserCeltic]

Just confirming:

Sean Grande ‏@SeanGrandePBP
Same starting lineup for the Celtics tonight.

Thomas, Turner, Crowder, Olynyk, Johnson.

Avery Bradley expected back Sunday in Memphis.

[Ilikesports17]

Sully is only big we have with the strength and toughness to hang with Drummond. I expect him to abuse our starting lineup.

[BudweiserCeltic]

Sully is only big we have with the strength and toughness to hang with Drummond. I expect him to abuse our starting lineup.

We'll see if we employ the same strategy of Brook Lopez, having our wings/guards double/help as soon as he touches the ball.

Will it work? Who knows, but that's probably what they should be doing and will do I'd reckon.

[Ilikesports17]

Sully is only big we have with the strength and toughness to hang with Drummond. I expect him to abuse our starting lineup.

We'll see if we employ the same strategy of Brook Lopez, having our wings/guards double/help as soon as he touches the ball.

Will it work? Who knows, but that's probably what they should be doing and will do I'd reckon.

I dont expect it to work because Lopez is big and skilled, where as Drummond is more of a bully type down low. He will out muscle and out jump you for rebounds, putbacks and points in the post.

Im not that worried about containing him defensively so much as I am that he will grab every rebound out there and bully kelly into tentative Kelly land.

[BudweiserCeltic]

Sully is only big we have with the strength and toughness to hang with Drummond. I expect him to abuse our starting lineup.

We'll see if we employ the same strategy of Brook Lopez, having our wings/guards double/help as soon as he touches the ball.

Will it work? Who knows, but that's probably what they should be doing and will do I'd reckon.

I dont expect it to work because Lopez is big and skilled, where as Drummond is more of a bully type down low. He will out muscle and out jump you for rebounds, putbacks and points in the post.

Im not that worried about containing him defensively so much as I am that he will grab every rebound out there and bully kelly into tentative Kelly land.

Kelly shouldn't be on him though, it'll be Amir. That's why I mentioned earlier that I'm hoping there won't be many switches. Even so, to your point, yes he'll bully everyone down there... it's often a group effort, Amir will have it tough.