Post by FLCeltsFan on Mar 31, 2008 13:48:16 GMT -5
at 
Indiana Pacers (31-43) at Boston Celtics (59-15)
Wednesday, April 2
7:00 PM ET
Game #75, Home Game #39
TV: ESPN, CSN HD, FSI
TD Banknorth Garden
Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard
vs 
Rajon Rondo vs Flip Murray
Shooting Guard
vs 
Ray Allen vs Kareem Rush
Small Forward
vs 
Paul Pierce vs Danny Granger
Power Forward
vs 
Kevin Garnett vs Mike Dunleavy
Center
vs 
Kendrick Perkins vs Troy Murphy
Off the Bench
Tony Allen, Big Baby Davis, James Posey, Eddie House, Leon Powe, Sam Cassell, PJ Brown, Brian Scalabrine
Injuries
Scot Pollard, ankle, out
Off the Bench
Tavis Diener, Marquis Daniels, Shawne Williams, Jeff Foster, Ike Diogu, Stephen Graham, Andre Owens, Jermaine O'Neal
Injuries
Jamaal Tinsley, knee, out
David Harrison , upper respiratory infection, day to day
Key Matchups
vs Rajon Rondo vs Flip Murray
Rondo should continue to have his way with opposing point guards in this game as he has the quickness edge against Murray
vs Paul Pierce vs Danny Granger
Granger is a nice young player and is a very good scorer. Pierce will need to make him work at both ends of the court.
Honorable Mention
KG vs Mike Dunleavy
KG has the height advantage and the Celtics should look to get the ball inside to KG a lot.
Defend the Perimeter Jim O'Brien's offensive scheme is to have his players shoot if they are open. The Pacers average almost 9 3's per game. They are a threat from beyond the arc. The Celtics are the top defensive team against the 3 so hopefully they will be able to stop the Pacers from taking over beyond the arc.
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.
Rebound The Celtics need to crash the boards and go after every rebound to limit Pacers second chance points while giving them selves the opportunity to score off misses.
Game Notes
The Celtics need to come out strong and try to put this team away. They have won the first two games in Indiana by an average of 11 points per game. The second game, the Celtics won without both Perk and KG.
The Pacers are in the 10th spot in the East and 3 games out of the playoffs. They are going to give it all they've got to try to keep their playoff hopes alive. Also, Jim O'Brien would love nothing better than to beat his old team.
Jermaine O'Neal returned to the Pacers for their last game after missing 2 months and gave them a lift as they beat the Heat by 20. Stephen Graham also returned to the lineup after missing 6 games. To quote Danny Granger, "We have to go out and give our best every game the rest of the way." The Pacers will be giving their all. Hopefully the Celtics will match their effort.
X-Factor
Motivation As with all of the games the rest of the season, it is going to come down to motivation. Are the Celtics more motivated to finishing strong and clinching the best record in the playoffs, or will the Pacers be more motivated to try to make the playoffs to earn a first round matchup against the Celtics?
