Celtics (39-9) at Pacers (21-30) 2/12

[FLCeltsFan]

at
Boston Celtics (39-9) at Indiana Pacers (21-30)
Tuesday, February 12
7:00 PM ET
TV: NBA LP ch 752, FSI, CSNHD
Sirius 121
Conseco Fieldhouse


Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard
vs
Rajon Rondo vs Travis Diener

Shooting Guard
vs
Ray Allen vs Danny Granger

Small Forward
vs
Paul Pierce vs Mike Dunleavy

Power Forward
vs
Brian Scalabrine vs Troy Murphy

Center
vs
Leon Powe vs Jeff Foster




Off the Bench
Tony Allen, Big Baby Davis, James Posey, Eddie House, Scot Pollard, Gabe Pruitt

Injuries
Kevin Garnett, ab strain, out
Kendrick Perkins, day to day
Scot Pollard, ankle, day to day


Off the Bench
Kareem Rush, Marquis Daniels, Shawne Williams, Ike Diogu, Stephen Graham, Andre Owens

Injuries
Jermaine O'Neal, bone bruise, out
Jamaal Tinsley, knee, day to day

Key Matchups
vs
Paul Pierce PPG 20.4 RPG 5.50 APG 4.8 EFF + 20.08
Mike Dunleavy PPG 17.5 RPG 5.80 APG 3.4 EFF + 18.29
Paul Pierce is coming off a 35 point game against the Spurs. He has been picking up the slack with KG out and should continue that in this game. Look for him to have a big game against Dunleavy, who isn't a strong defensive player.

vs
Rajon Rondo PPG 10.2 RPG 4.50 APG 4.8 EFF + 14.27
Travis Diener PPG 6.0 RPG 1.20 APG 2.6 EFF + 5.65
Rajon Rondo has been playing very aggressively and has also picked up the slack with KG out. He should be able to beat Diener off the dribble and also should be able to disrupt the Pacers' offense.

Keys to the Game
Don't Let Down The Celtics are coming off a big win over the Spurs and it would be easy to let down for this game. They need to continue to play with urgency and treat every game as if it was a playoff game because the other teams are going to play that way against them.

Defend the Perimeter Jim O'Brien's offensive scheme is to have his players shoot if they are open. The Pacers average 8.86 3's per game. They are a threat from beyond the arc and hopefully the Celtics will have learned from the Raptors' game that you can't leave a 3 point shooting team open on the perimeter.

Attack the Basket The Pacers are in the top 3 teams with points allowed in the paint at 32.16. They are not a strong defensive team and so the Celtics should attack the basket and look to score inside whenever possible.

Game Notes
The Pacers have been struggling and it would be easy to take them for granted but any team can be dangerous on any given night as they all get up to play the Celtics. The Pacers are 3-7 in their last 10 but have won their last 2. They are 10-14 at home and 11-16 against Eastern Conference teams. Conseco Fieldhouse has been a tough place for the Celtics to play and they are only 5-10 there overall. In fact, on opening night 1999, the Celtics were the Pacers' very first victim there. This is the second of 3 games that these two teams will play this season. The Celtics won the first match up in November 101-86. Both teams are missing key players with Tinsley and O'Neal out for the Pacers and Perk and KG out for the Celtics. The Pacers allow more points than any other Eastern Conference team at 105.5 ppg. If the Celtics play like they did against the Spurs they should win this game easily. But, if they come in without a sense of urgency, the Pacers could pull this one out.

[FLCeltsFan]

Picking up with 4:04 left in the first. Indy up 15-14. Celtics got out to 10-0 start but Indy came back to take their first lead at 13-12. Pierce is fouled and goes to the line. He hits both FTs. Roneo with pressure on Diener in the back court. Harris called for a foul. Davis gets the ball in the lane and misses a layup. Diener hits a 3. Posey way short on a 3 and Pacers rebound. Granger draws a foul as he drives down the lane. Time out with Pacers up 18-16 and 2:45 left in the first

[FLCeltsFan]

Granger at the line hits both FT's. House in for Rondo brings the ball up court. Davis gets the ball inside and has it knocked away but he bulls it up and in. Pacers miss and Celtics rebound. PP misses a tough fall away. Rush grabs the rebound. Granger hits a jumper. RA drives down the lane and lays it in. Daniels gets inside and is fouled as the SC winds down. He misses the first. hits the second. Posey finds Tony who drives and hands off to Baby who is fouled. He misses the first and hits the second. House with pressure in the back court. Harrison gets in the lane for a layup. Charge called on Ray. Bad call by the refs. Should have been a blocking foul. INdy misses a heave at the buzzer and Pacers up 25-21 at the end of 1.

[FLCeltsFan]

Celtics inbound to start the second. Williams called for a foul. Celtics with a shot clock violation. Daniels spins to the hoop and lays it in and draws the foul on House. House, Posey, Tony, Baby and RA on the floor for the Celtics. Tony misses a 3. Pacers rebound and Murphy hits a jumper. Celtics miss and Indy rebounds and Granger takes it right to the hoop for a layup. RA shoots a fall away in the lane as the SC goes off and draws the foul. He hits both FTs. The Celtics seem to be out of sync on both ends of the court. Granger blocks house's shot out of bounds. Celtics inbound with 12 on the SC. House hits a deep 3 off the inbounds pass. Posey called for a foul. Pierce comes in for RA. Indy inbounds on the side. Celtics deflect the ball out of bounds. INdy inbounds with 15 on the SC. Indiana turns it over. They get it up court quickly and House hits a jumper. Pacers miss and Murphy keeps the rebound alive. Pacers hit a jumper. Posey hits a 3 from the corner. Time out with Pacers up 36-31 and 7:58 left in the half. Celtics were down 13 and have come back to within 5

[FLCeltsFan]

Celtics inbound in the back court and bring it up. House misses a 3 and Pacers rebound. They call a blocking foul on Baby... another bad call. It should have been a charge. Pacers miss a long 3 and Celtics rebound. Celtics miss a jumper. Pacers rebound. Rush fouled as he takes it into the lane. Pacers inbound on the side. Rush takes the inbounds pass right to the hoop for a layup. Tony drives down the lane to the hoop and lays it in. Dunleavy with a pass inside to Foster for a layup. Posey misses a 3 and Foster called for a foul on the rebound. Celtics inbound on the side. Pierce passes to Tony cutting down the lane and he is fouled. Tome out with Pacers up 40-33 and 5:52 left in the half

[FLCeltsFan]

Tony hits both FTs. Baby called for his 3rd foul as he clobbers Harrison going up for a layup. Harrison hits the first and misses the second. Posey rebounds. Powe comes in for Baby. Rondo in for House. PP hits a jumper. Harrison gets the ball in the paint and hits a short turn around jumper. Rondo takes it to the hoop and is blocked. Powe gets the rebound and lays it in. Pacers called for a travel. Posey hits a 3. Time out with Pacers up 43-42 and 4:14 left in the half

[FLCeltsFan]

Harrison misses a jump hook and Daniels gets away with a foul as he grabs the rebound and puts it in. Posey misses a jumper. Pacers rebound. Diener misses and Celtics rebound. Pierce called for a travel. Rondo with pressure in the back court. Rondo with a steal. Powe called for a travel as he tries to get around Dunleavy. Posey knocks the ball away and RA comes up with it. Powe gets the ball inside and Harrison called for his 4th foul. Time out with Indy up 45-42 and 2:46 left in the half.

[FLCeltsFan]

Powe hits both FTs. Daniels misses and Powe rips down the rebound. Rondo drives and hands off to Powe who has it knocked away. Pacers miss and Celtics rebound. Pierce gets the ball as he cuts to the hoop and lays it in. Pacers miss and Celtics rebound. Powe's layup is blocked by Granger. Celtics inbound with 8 on the SC. Rondo hits a deep 3 at the SC. Diener hits a 3 from the top of the arc. PP hits a tough fade away jumper in the lane. Pacers miss and Diogu gets the rebound and put back. Rondo drives down the lane and is called for an offensive foul. Doc can't believe the call. Williams commits 2 fouls on the last play and misses at the buzzer. Score at the half is Boston 51 and Indiana 50

[FLCeltsFan]

Celtics inbound to start the third. RA hits a jumper with his foot on the line off the catch. Foul called on Pacers. Celtics inbound on the side. PP hits a jumper. Dunleavy hits a baseline jumper over RA. Dunleavy called for a reach in foul. Powe with a good catch of a pass inside and lays it in. Granger pulls up and hits a jumper. Ray misses a runner in the lane and powe misses the tip. Indy comes away with it. Rondo called for a foul. pacers inbound on the side. Dunleavy with a tough catch and shoot basket. Powe misses a hook shot in the lane. Foster rebounds. Pacers miss and Rondo rebounds. PP pulls up and misses a 3. Indy rebounds. Diener's shot is short. Celtics rebound and long pass up court to Rondo who lays it in. Foster called for a foul and he is whining about it. Scal misses a 3 and Granger rebounds. Indy misses a jumper. Celtics miss. RA misses a 3. Powe rebounds and RA takes it to the hoop for a layup. Pierce called for his 3rd foul as he knocks the ball away from Granger. He hits both FTS. Rondo pulls up at the top of the key and misses a jumper. INdy rebounds. Dunleavy hits a 3 on a catch and shoot to tie the game at 61. PP hits a jumper. GRanger misses and Powe rebounds. PP hits a 3 from the top of the arc. Time out with Celtics up 66-61 and 5"53 left in the third

[FLCeltsFan]

Pacers turn it over. Jump ball called although RA was fouled first. RA wins the tip. Celtics miss and Indy rebounds. Dunleavy misses a 3 and Celtics rebound. Scal hits a 3 from the corner. Rush takes it to the hoop and lays it in. PP with a bullet pass down the lane to Powe for a dunk and foul. He hits the FT. Powe almost gets a steal but Pacers recover. Daniels hits a jumper over RA. Powe gets the ball inside and draws the 5th foul on Harrison. Powe misses the first. hits the second. Williams gets away with a charge and misses a layup. Celtics rebound. RA pulls up at the FT line and hits a jumper. Rush hits a 3 from the corner. Rondo drives down the lane and lays it in. Posey called for a foul. Time out with Celtics up 77-68 and 2:16 left in the third

[CelticsLoyalist]

Thanks for these calls FL. I dont know how many people are here reading it but I appreciate your work very much. This game is going well so far. Powe is the man! He adds rebounding and scoring which is something we dont get from Perk, but Perks big body fills up the lane better thats for sure. Gotta hold off this run right now tho.

[FLCeltsFan]

He hits both FTs. RA misses a jumper. Williams hits a 3. Rondo is fouled as he shoots a short jumper. Tony comes in for RA. Rondo hits both FTs. Murphys misses and Celtics rebound. PP hits a 3 off the catch. Rush ducks around Posey to lay it in. Rondo misses a runner and Pacers rebound. Murphy misses a layup. Celtics rebound. Baby called for a travel as he gathers himself for a layup. Murphy misses a layup but tips in his own miss. Granger blocks a shot at the buzzer and score at the end of 3 is Celtics 82 and Pacers 77

[runrondo]

How did Baby travel on that play?..We only got a 5 point lead in the 3rd, we need to focus on our defense to win..

[FLCeltsFan]

Pacers inbound to start the 4th. Foul called on Baby, his 4th. Pacers inbound on the side. Murphy spins to the hoop and lays it in as he gets away with a foul. Baby misses a layup. Indy rebounds. Rush misses a 3 and Celtics inbound. Posey misses a 3 and Daniels rebounds. Rush hits a short jumper in the lane. PP misses a fall away on the baseline. Indy rebounds but turns it over and Tony takes it to the hoop and lays it in. Williams drives down the wide open lane and lays it in. Davis misses a layup. Williams rebounds and pulls up and hits a 3. Timeout with Pacers up 86-84 and 9:16 left in the fourth

[CelticsLoyalist]

Hey run, yeah the officiating is again quite crazy. How do they expect to improve the league every year when the officiating seems to get worse? Gotta focus and just play our game and try not to think about the refs. They are attacking Rondo again tho and I dont like it.