Heat 105- Celtics 103 : Heat Win 23rd Straight, Green Emerges

The Heat got their 23rd straight win last night against the Celtics in a rare win for Miami at TD Garden 105-103, but the Celtics gained much more after the game, confidence.

Yes, they lost the actual game but they proved that the they can indeed compete with the Heat, and at this point have to be viewed as the number on contender to knock the Heat off the throne of the East. 

Oh yeah, and they did this all without their most important 'active' player, Kevin Garnett. 

Jeff Green got the start in place of the injured KG, and took full advantage by putting on a masterful performance, probably the greatest game out of anybody in a Celtics uniform this season. 

Green began the night by scoring 21 point in the first 9 minutes of the game and was key to the Celtics getting out in front of the Heat early. 

He would finish the game with 43 points, the most put up by a Celtic all year and the first player other than Paul Pierce to score 40 points since Antoine Walker. Truly, this was the breakout game the Celtics were looking for from their up and coming forward since his return from heart surgery.  Unfortunately, it was not enough to edge the streaking Miami Heat .

The Celtics got out to a big 17 point lead by the middle of the second quarter only to see the Heat go on a 15 to 6 run to end the second half and get within three. It was the same thing at the end of the game too.

The Celtics were up seven with five minutes left and Lebron James took over the game. He capped off a 15 to 4 run with a 21 foot contested jumper with 10 seconds left in the game to seal the deal for the Heat. 

Overall, the Celtics lost but if they had a healthy KG in the lineup it would have been a completely different night. It could have been a repeat of the first game the Celtics played with out Rondo on that Sunday back in February where they were outlasted in the double overtime game by the Celtics. 

Lebron was getting to the rim at ease without the threat of KG there to meet him. It was a huge hole for the Celtics but it was also great to have others step up,  especially Green. 

It wasn't just offensively that Green produced but he switched on James on multiple occasions, a task usually assigned for Paul Pierce the entire game. This definitely helped Pierce conserve energy, even though he played 40 minutes he was not spent on the offensive end and produced in his newly defined facilitator role. Pierce put up 17-8-8, and was just off on a potential game winning three point attempt with seconds remaining. 

Lebron and his Heat are rolling right now, but come postseason time if the matchup should fall into place, the Celtics have ensured us all two things. They can compete with the Heat, and it is going to be one hell-of-a seven game series. 

-Sean Dutra

@seandutra on twitter.

Celtics 83 - Pacers 81: Green Down Pacers in Final Second

Kevin Garnett had 18 points and 10 rebounds last night, but in the two biggest plays in the game, it was his only two assists of the night that made the difference, capping of an 11-0 run and a 83-81 victory over the Indiana Pacers last night.

The Celtics were down two and and ran a pick and roll with KG and Pierce at the top of the key. Pierce dished to Kevin at his favorite spot to shoot at the free throw line but instead of shooting the patented  jump shot he found a cutting Avery Bradley for an easy layup to tie the game. 

On the next possession with the game tied, it was more of the same with Garnett running the offense  and all the defensive attention on Pierce, Garnett patiently waited for Jeff Green to get free off a Pierce  screen and lofted a perfect pass to Green who layed it up with .05 seconds left in the game. 

"Happy it went in. Great pass by Garnett. Great execution by us. Good draw up by Doc," Jeff Green said after the game.  

There has to be a lot of credit given to Garnett, Pierce, and Green for the execution for the final play, but also Doc Rivers' ability to draw up the right play was on display in the closing seconds again last night. 

It wasn't all pretty though for the Celtics last night. The Pacers were dominating the C's for the first 3 quarters. Indiana had a 14 point lead in the 3rd but it was a resilient and season defining comeback for the Celtics. 

Other than Garnett the rest of the Celtics truly struggled on the offensive end but did notch five players in double digits. Garnett (18), Pierce (13), Bradley (13), Green (11), and Jason Terry (10) were the leading scorers for the Celtics. 

The Cetlics' half court defense was championship caliber all game. They were beat in transition a few to many times but they held the Pacers to only 36% shooting on the night and forced 14 turnovers. 

Going into this game, many were using this game as a measuring stick for the Celtics to see how they matched up to a true contender in the East. The question was answered, the Celtics are for real and the other than the Heat they are the team to be feared the most in the East come playoff time. 

NOTES:

Early on the Celtics had no answer for Roy Hibbert, who looked absolutely dominant for the first 8 minutes of the game. Hibbert had 7pts and 8 boards in the opening couple of minutes. However, the rest of the game the Celtics were able to contain the big man and he only finished with 12 pts and 12 rebs. 

DJ White made his Celtics debut last night, playing 4 minutes and bringing down 2 boards and 2 blocked shots. 

Paul Pierce, Jeff Green, and Avery Bradley were a combined 15 for 44, 34 %. KG was 7 for 10, 70%. Could have been ugly without KG holding down the fort last night. 

Next Game : Friday March 8th 8pm vs. Atlanta Hawks @TD Garden

- Sean Dutra  

@seandutra on twitter

Celtics 110 - Jazz 107 (OT): Pierce takes over in OT

After a gruesome stretch of playing five games in seven days, Paul Pierce put his teammates on his back and carried them to victory last night in Salt Lake City.

Pierce scored seven straight points in the extra period, finishing with 26 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in one of his best performances of the season.

"It was huge," said Coach Rivers. "Whatever it was, it was the best win of the year for me. To go into overtime and still have enough to win."

After nearly hitting a game-winning shot as time expired, Pierce went on a 7-2 run of his own in overtime. Pierce hit a three-pointer to start off his run and tippy toed around the Jazz's defenders, scoring back-to-back jumpers.

The Celtics also got a big game from Avery Bradley, who scored a season-high 18 points to go with his five rebounds and four assists.

The Jazz trailed by eight going into the fourth but opened the quarter with a 13-2 run. Pierce broke a 95-95 tie in the last minute of regulation with a jump shot, which was quickly answered by Jazz's Alec Burke, setting up the final play for Pierce.

"We wanted to win in regulation," Pierce said. "It would have felt better to just have a stop when we needed it. That's what we need to get better at. We didn't do it in Portland. We didn't do it tonight. That's what we need to start focusing on. When we get the lead and we need crucial stops, we have to figure out how to get them."

Gordon Hayward scored a team-high 26 points for the Jazz. Paul Millsap chipped in with 16 points and six rebounds.

Pierce and Kevin Garnett got the help they needed last night. Bradley's 18 points along with Jason Terry's 14 points (including four three-pointers), kept the game close. Garnett scored 13 points, including a big shot in overtime and grabbed 10 rebounds.

Overall, the game had 13 lead changes and was tied 17 times.

Celtics will get a well deserved rest this week. They return home to play the Golden State Warriors, Friday night at TD Garden.


Notes:

In a postgame interview, Pierce said that this game against the Jazz was the game that stood out the most to him when he saw the west coast road trip schedule. After going back and fourth across time zones, the Celtics will look refreshed at home, having had four days off... Look for Jordan Crawford to play well in his first game at TD Garden as a Celtic. I expect him to play big minutes and will look a more comfortable with his new team, after practicing at home and having the necessary rest.