Boston Celtics: Return To Dominance

[Toaster]

Good read man, keep it up!

[Pezell04x]

RONDO STEALS GAME FROM PISTONS

Rondo's steal sealed the game for Boston

Rajon Rondo had a terrible shooting game tonight (1-4 from the field, 3 missed layups) but he made it all up with one play. With 24 seconds left on the clock in the fourth quarter and the Celtics tied 88-88 with the winless Detroit Pistons, Rondo made a steal attempt on Rodney Stuckey.

"I was getting called for reaching in all night but with 1 foul to give, I figured I might as well give it a try." Rondo told the media after-wards, all smiles.

The ball was poked loose from Stuckey and Rondo went in for a lay-up, his only two points of the night.

Quote:

"We were frustrated all night. We couldn't shoot, we couldn't defend, we couldn't box anyone out and we couldn't hit free throws. This is a game we should have lost, but we didn't. In the end, all that counts is that we're 4-1 instead of 3-2. The Pistons played a hell of a game and they deserved to win this one." Rivers said after the win.

The Celtics were frustrated with themselves all night due to a lack of defense

The Celtics shot 16-29 from the free throw line - including Shaq going 5-11 and David Lee going 3-9.

Quote:

"If we're going to win basketball games we need to hit free throws. It's that simple. You can't throw away free points and expect to win. Like I said earlier - we got lucky." said Rivers.

Ray Allen had a game high 29 points including shooting 8-14 behind the 3 points line.

Quote:

"I felt good out there. I felt like I had to take the game over. We weren't shooting well, I didn't shoot well, but someone had to do it. I'm happy we won and I'm happy we're able to put this game behind us." Allen said.

Garnett scored 18 points (7-13) while David Lee recorded his second double-double as a Celtic, notching 15 points and 12 rebounds.

On the other side of the court, Tayshaun Prince was all over the Celtics - scoring 20 points on 53% shooting.

Stuckey couldn't believe that Rondo just did that

Quote:

"Tayshaun was good tonight and was the cog in our offense. Rip (Hamilton) played well too and we played very well as a unit. In the end, luck wasn't on our side tonight." Pistons head coach John Kuester told the media after-wards.

Hamilton scored 19 points and was efficient from the field, shooting just a notch below 50% (7-15) and was 4-5 from the free throw line.

Quote:

"We had our chances all night. We weren't dominated - in fact, I think we were the better team tonight. Was Rondo's steal as reach-in? That's not for me to decide. All I know was the better team lost tonight. If we can take anything away from this game it's that we can hang with the top teams in the East." Hamilton stated.

Rodney Stuckey was not available for comment.

The Celtics will head to the TD Bank Garden to welcome Brandon Jennings and the Milwaukee Bucks in the second game of a back-to-back.

Nov 2, 2010 - BOS at DET
TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Boston Celtics (2-1)	18	22	23	27	90
Detroit Pistons (0-3)	24	24	19	21	88

Boston Celtics
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Rajon Rondo	32	1-4	0-0	0-0	1	7	1	0	4	2
Ray Allen	34	10-19	8-14	1-1	1	0	1	1	1	29
Danny Granger	31	2-8	1-3	2-2	4	1	1	0	0	7
Kevin Garnett	33	7-13	0-0	4-4	1	4	4	2	2	18
David Lee	33	6-12	0-0	3-9	12	0	2	0	0	15
BENCH	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Shaq	17	3-5	0-0	5-11	6	0	1	1	0	11
Glen Davis	15	0-2	0-0	1-2	3	1	1	1	0	1
James Posey	18	0-1	0-1	0-0	4	0	1	0	0	0
Delonte West	15	3-6	1-3	0-0	1	0	0	0	0	7
Avery Bradley	17	0-2	0-1	0-0	1	5	0	0	1	0
Marquis Daniels	-- DID NOT PLAY --
Von Wafer	-- DID NOT PLAY --
TEAM TOTALS		32-72	10-22	16-29	34	18	12	5	8	90

Detroit Pistons
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Rodney Stuckey	39	4-9	0-0	0-1	4	6	2	0	6	8
Richard Hamilton	27	7-15	1-2	4-5	2	2	1	0	0	19
Tayshaun Prince	40	8-15	1-2	3-3	5	5	1	0	0	20
Jason Maxiell	22	2-6	0-0	0-0	7	1	0	0	2	6
Ben Wallace	26	2-5	0-0	0-0	8	0	1	0	0	4
BENCH	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Ben Gordon	26	3-8	0-4	0-0	1	3	0	0	0	6
Jonas Jerebko	20	3-4	0-0	0-0	0	0	1	0	2	6
Charlie Villanueva	14	1-5	0-1	0-0	4	1	0	1	0	4
Greg Monroe	12	3-3	0-0	0-0	8	0	0	0	1	6
Will Bynum	10	1-2	0-1	0-0	0	3	0	0	1	2
Chris Willcox	9	3-5	0-0	2-2	5	0	0	0	1	8
Tracy McGrady	1	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TEAM TOTALS		38-77	2-10	10-13	44	21	6	1	13	88

Rondo steal: http://community.2ksports.com/commun...ediaid=2987130

[dehpierrot]

If you play good D, the games become easier to win. Nice effort to win this game
go Celtics!

[Pezell04x]

Quote: Originally Posted by dehpierrot

If you play good D, the games become easier to win. Nice effort to win this game go Celtics!

Yeah, that's still a learning curve for me. Offense I usually have no issue with. I fall for the pump fake way to much

[Pezell04x]

This game was never in doubt as the Boston Celtics dominated the Milwaukee Bucks since tip-off.

Quote:

"We played well tonight, I thought. We limited their opportunities and we made a concerted effort to stop Andrew Bogut. In the first half that worked well - in the second half he had his way with us. With that said, I thought Rondo was great and I thought KG was great. We still need to work on our free throws, but I think we're progressing" - Doc Rivers

The Celtics got out to a quick 51-34 lead at the end of the second quarter and at points led the game by more than 20. Milwaukee made a small run in the third quarter - going 15-0 over an 8 minutes stretch until Boston called a timeout and gathered themselves.

In the 4th quarter, Danny Granger took over, scoring 12 of his 16 points in the fourth and shooting 2-2 from behind the 4 point line.

Quote:

"We moved the ball really well. Rondo was great and he had no problems finding the open man." - Danny Granger

Rondo recorded a double double on the night scoring 11 points and dropping 11 assists.

Quote:

"I didn't play as well as people think. 7 turnovers isn't a good stat to have, especially in a game where we dominated at points. You know, I can't allow myself to half-*** things like that. If we're going to win games, I need to be more careful with the ball" - Rajon Rondo

The Bucks' Andrew Bogut led all scores with 18, 16 of them in the second half.

Quote:

"Andrew was good tonight - that's about it. We need to limit our turnovers - we had something like 20?! That's unheard of!" - Scott Skies.

Brandon Jennings had 9 turnovers has the Bucks gave the Celtics the ball 20 times.

The Celtics welcome Derek Rose and the 2-2 Bulls on Friday.

Nov 3, 2010 - MIL at BOS
TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Milwaukee Bucks (3-1)	20	14	24	19	77
Boston Celtics (3-1)	24	27	16	27	94

Milwaukee Bucks
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Brandon Jennings	39	3-10	0-2	2-2	1	8	2	0	9	8
Jon Salmons	37	7-11	3-5	0-0	5	2	3	0	1	17
Corey Maggette	33	5-11	0-0	0-0	6	2	1	0	3	10
Luc Richard Mbah A Moute	27	2-5	0-0	0-0	4	2	1	0	3	4
Andrew Bogut	32	8-10	0-0	2-4	6	4	2	2	3	18
BENCH	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Ersan Ilyasova	22	1-3	1-3	0-0	1	2	0	0	1	3
Drew Gooden	14	5-10	0-0	0-2	7	0	0	0	0	10
Larry Sanders	10	1-2	0-0	1-2	2	0	1	1	0	3
Kyle Dooling	10	2-2	0-0	0-0	0	2	2	0	0	4
Chris Douglas-Roberts	9	0-2	0-0	0-0	0	3	0	0	0	0
Michael Redd	6	0-3	0-1	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carlos Delfino	7	0-1	0-1	0-0	2	0	0	0	0	0
TEAM TOTALS		34-70	4-12	5-10	37	22	12	3	20	77

Boston Celtics
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Rajon Rondo	34	5-7	0-0	1-1	0	11	4	0	7	11
Ray Allen	32	7-15	3-8	0-1	1	1	2	0	1	17
Danny Granger	28	6-7	2-2	2-4	0	0	0	0	0	16
Kevin Garnett	28	7-11	0-0	0-1	9	1	2	0	1	14
David Lee	28	3-10	0-0	1-2	8	2	2	1	0	7
BENCH	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Shaq	16	2-6	0-0	2-3	5	0	0	2	0	5
Glen Davis	21	3-6	0-0	2-4	4	3	1	1	0	8
James Posey	21	1-2	1-1	0-0	5	1	0	1	0	3
Delonte West	17	2-8	1-6	1-2	0	1	0	0	1	6
Avery Bradley	15	2-2	0-0	0-0	0	2	0	0	2	4
Marquis Daniels	5	1-2	0-1	0-0	0	0	0	1	0	2
Von Wafer	-- DID NOT PLAY --
TEAM TOTALS		39-76	7-18	9-18	32	22	11	6	12	94

[Pezell04x]

After a dominating win over the Milwaukee Bucks the other night, the Boston Celtics welcomed the Chicago Bulls into the TD Bank Garden. At the end of the night, the Celtics took that dominating performance over the Bucks and amplified it by 20 - defeating the Bulls 112-88.

Quote:

"Everything was working for us tonight. Our offense was ran to precision by both Rondo and Bradley - our shots were falling and Danny (Granger) was outstanding." - Doc Rivers

Granger scored 39 points for the Celtics, his highest as a Celtic, on 17 for 32 shooting (53%).

Quote:

"Shot fell early and often. Every time I got the ball I felt like I could put it in the basket. It was a good night for us tonight - a good night." - Danny Granger

Ray Allen scored 18 and David Lee recorded a double double - scoring 10 points and grabbing 10 boards. James Posey was a huge spark off of the bench for the C's as he dropped 16 points.

Quote:

"Our bench was good tonight. James (Posey) scored 16 and Av(ery Bradley) had 10 assists. I left them out there after halftime and in the beginning of the 4th quarter to not only rest the starters but because they can hang. These guys are really good" - Doc Rivers

Kevin Garnett had a slow night - scoring 3 points and grabbing 7 rebounds.

The Bulls took a huge hit tonight as Derek Rose went down with an injury in the third quarter. Rose drove the lane and collided with Rajon Rondo and landed awkwardly on his foot. The medical staff has reported that Rose will miss 2-4 weeks with a strained achilles.

Quote:

"I landed when I heard something pop. Immediately I knew that it was bad. These things happen and it will be hard for me to sit on the sidelines and watch my guys play." - Derek Rose

The Bulls defense couldn't stop Boston but their low-post offense was good. Carlos Boozer scored 22 and grabbed 12 boards while Joakim Noah scored 14 and grabbed 16 boards.

CJ Watson filled in for Rose and played admirably but it will be tough to replace the all-star guard.

Quote:

"It's a blow to us for sure. He's our best player out there and to lose him for 2-4 weeks will certainly make us change our view on this offense. I believe that we can do it and we're lucky it's early in the season but we will miss him out there." - Tom Thibodeau

The Celtics have started the season 5-1 and will travel to Oklahoma City for a game against the Thunder. This will kick off a 4 game road trip for the green.

Nov 5, 2010 - CHI at BOS
TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Chicago Bulls (2-2)	24	22	21	21	88
Boston Celtics (4-1)	28	30	25	29	112

Chicago Bulls
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Derek Rose	22	6-8	0-0	1-2	2	4	2	1	8	13
Ronnie Brewer	38	2-4	0-0	0-0	1	0	0	0	0	4
Luol Deng	33	3-8	0-1	0-0	2	2	1	1	3	6
Carlos Boozer	39	11-27	0-0	0-2	12	2	3	0	0	22
Joakim Noah	39	6-8	0-0	2-2	16	4	1	1	1	14
BENCH	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
CJ Watson	27	5-12	0-0	5-5	1	8	1	0	3	15
Kyle Korver	16	3-7	3-4	0-0	1	1	0	0	1	9
Taj Gibson	15	1-3	0-1	1-2	4	1	1	0	1	3
Keith Bogans	7	1-1	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Kyle Weaver	4	0-0	0-0	0-0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Kurt Thomas	4	0-0	0-0	0-0	1	0	0	1	0	0
James Johnson	-- DID NOT PLAY --
TEAM TOTALS		38-78	3-6	9-13	40	22	9	4	17	88

Boston Celtics
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Rajon Rondo	28	2-6	0-0	1-2	4	13	6	0	3	5
Ray Allen	28	7-11	3-4	1-2	3	1	1	0	0	18
Danny Granger	33	17-32	4-14	1-2	0	2	0	0	1	39
Kevin Garnett	30	1-5	0-0	1-2	7	2	1	3	1	3
David Lee	32	2-6	0-0	4-7	10	1	2	0	1	10
BENCH	MIN	FGM-A	3PM-A	FTM-A	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	PTS
Shaq	17	2-2	0-0	0-0	6	0	0	0	2	4
Glen Davis	19	3-3	0-0	2-2	5	2	0	0	0	8
James Posey	16	7-9	2-4	0-0	3	2	1	0	1	16
Delonte West	23	1-5	1-5	0-0	2	3	1	0	0	3
Avery Bradley	21	3-5	0-0	0-0	0	10	1	0	2	6
Marquis Daniels	-- DID NOT PLAY --
Von Wafer	-- DID NOT PLAY --
TEAM TOTALS		46-84	10-27	10-20	40	36	13	3	11	112

[Jusafan]

I'm liking this one so far. Interesting trade at the beginning with getting Granger, Posey & Lee. Looks like the Celtics are heading in the right direction! *thumbs up*

[R1zzo23]

Wasn't happy about the trade early, but it is growing on me. And nobody puts more into their write-ups than you have so far. Keep it up and bring No. 18 back home to Boston where it belongs!