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Post by FLCeltsFan on Dec 19, 2007 23:25:49 GMT -5
 at  Chicago Bulls (9-14) at Boston Celtics (20-3) Friday, December 21 7:00 PM Regular season game #24, Home Game #14 TV: ESPN, CSN HD, CSN Chicago Sirius Radio: 125 TD Banknorth Garden   Probable Starters      Rajon Rondo/Ray Allen/Paul Pierce/Kevin Garnett/Kendrick Perkins Off the BenchJames Posey, Eddie House, Scot Pollard, Brian Scalabrine, Big Baby Davis, Leon Powe InjuriesNone  Probable Starters     Kirk Hinrich /Ben Gordon/ Andres Nociani/ Luol Deng/ Joe Smith Off the Bench Chris Duhon, Aaron Gray, Joakim Noah, Tyrus Thomas, Thabo Sefolosha InjuriesNone  Key Matchups  vs  Rajon Rondo PPG 9.0 RPG 3.90 APG 5.2 EFF + 13.86 Kirk Hinrich PPG 11.1 RPG 3.50 APG 6.0 EFF + 12.09  vs  Kevin Garnett PPG 18.8 RPG 10.40 APG 3.7 EFF + 26.91 Luol Deng PPG 18.5 RPG 6.80 APG 1.8 EFF + 17.16 Keys to the Game: 1. Rebound. The Bulls are a very good rebounding team. The Celtics need to concentrate on boxing out and beating the Bulls to the boards. 2. Energy for 48 Minutes. The Celtics seem to either come out slow and then pick it up, or start quickly and then lose their focus. They need to play consistently for 48 minutes. 3. Defense. The Bulls can hurt you both inside and out. The Celtics will need to defend on the perimeter as the Bulls have several weapons from the outside. They also have to cut off the lane to avoid easy shots in the paint. 4. Ball movement. The Celtics must keep the ball moving. In the Pistons game they let the ball stop and were taking bad shots and not trying to find the open man. They let the Pistons defense get to them. They have to handle defense better. Game notes: Celtics are coming off their first home loss of the season and will want to get back on track and start a new winning streak. They won't want to lose two in a row. They beat the Bulls in Chicago and so should be able to beat them in their own building. The Bulls are 6-4 in their last 10 games and won their last game. Rondo is coming off one of his best games of the season and needs to continue to build on that. Hopefully the Celtics will bounce back for a big game in this one. |
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Post by runrondo on Dec 20, 2007 21:57:45 GMT -5
Hope we bounce back strongly from our first loss at home
Wonder how Rondo will perform since the Bulls are bound to worry about him more since he had 18pts 7reb 5ast agaisnt them last time and was the main reason we won...
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Post by The Eye of the Q is upon you! on Dec 21, 2007 12:33:10 GMT -5
This will be another challenge for us. But the Bulls are not as strong a team as is Detriot. So I look forward to a bounce back victory. I never thought we would be 20-3 at this point in the season so I have no complaints about Doc's coaching. I just wish KG would look for his shot more on offense, and Paul Pierce to stop the dribble ISO's all together. Defense looks quite good which is a polar opposite of what we saw last year.
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Post by FLCeltsFan on Dec 21, 2007 13:15:05 GMT -5
I agree that the ISO's are brutal. In the last game, it wasn't Tony's mistake on the final play that bothered me as much as Pierce's the play before. Tony is still young and will learn from that mistake. The play before where Pierce rushed a bad shot leaving so much time on the clock really bothered me. He is a vet and should know better. His shot was off all game. That final shot should have gone to KG or RA. The time for Pierce taking every final shot should be over. They should look to the hot hand and it definitely wasn't Pierce in that game.
Wallace may not play tonight. He missed their last game with a sore left foot and it is a game time decision today.
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Post by runrondo on Dec 21, 2007 19:26:51 GMT -5
Looking good so far...lots of hustle and energy
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Post by DERRENMATTS on Dec 21, 2007 19:32:49 GMT -5
That's good to hear. I like it when the game starts off on a strong note. I'm at work right now and will be going to dinner after this. I'll be watching the game when I come home, and how I come home to a win.
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Post by runrondo on Dec 21, 2007 19:44:56 GMT -5
Celtics 26 Bulls 19 at the end of the first half...Offense still seems to be a little slow to me though we were hustling on the boards taking advantage of the absence of Wallace...We were using isos for Ray Allen for some weird reasons..People need to move a lot more without the ball and set picks..
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Post by CelticsLoyalist on Dec 21, 2007 20:16:20 GMT -5
Guess who brought the ball down and then even pounded it once. At least he made the bucket and got fouled on top of the Off. Reb, but still, classic Perk LOL!
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Post by runrondo on Dec 21, 2007 20:26:11 GMT -5
I really am disgusted by Perk's offensive moves..It seems like it's always the same bad moves, and he takes FOREVER to actually make the move...At least he's a solid defender and rebounder all around...
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Post by Roadrunner on Dec 21, 2007 23:04:23 GMT -5
Good win vs. the lottery bound Bulls.
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Post by FLCeltsFan on Dec 21, 2007 23:57:07 GMT -5
It amazes me that the Bulls are this bad. They showed so much promise last season and were thought by most before the season to challenge for the title this season. Good win for us. Sunday will be the real test though.
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Post by DERRENMATTS on Dec 22, 2007 2:46:58 GMT -5
Yeah, the Bulls shouldn't be this bad. Having Ben Wallace out of action didn't help any, but even then, they don't look like the same team. Kirk, Ben, and Luol look like a shell of their former self--they need to get back into their games, soon.
With that said, boy do I want Aaron Gray on our team. He looked good on the court, both offensively and defensively. On one play, Perk tried to back him down in the post, but even with a good shove to the chest, Gray did not budge. Its quite impressive since guys go flying when Perk drives into them.
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