November 7, 2007
7:30 PM EST (Comcast SportsNet)
TD Banknorth Garden (Boston, MA)
Announcers: Mike AnGormanagement, Tommy "Want to Touch the" Heinsohn and Bob "Cheap" Cousy ; Gary PoonTanguay and Donny Darko (in-studio) ; Greg "Old Saint" Dickerson (sideline reporter)
Celtics Starting Lineup: Rayden, I've Got a Rajon Rondo, Perk'd Off, Kevvy G, Da Troof
Nuggets Starting Lineup: Apple iVerson, Linas "And the Great Pumpkin" Kleiza, Marcus WebCamby, Grand Kenyon Martin, CarmeloNougat Anthony
The Nuggets are coming off a loss to the lowly New York Knicks last night (their first appearance in Madison Square Garden since the infamous brawl), and Iverson's mates (including a returning Kenyon Martin) will not be in a good mood heading into Boston.
As for the Celtics, Glenn Rivers M.D. is making his return to the bench after the sudden passing of his father ... Donny Marshall is convinced that the players will band together and play their hearts out for their coach during this difficult time; we shall see.
FIRST QUARTER
Camby and Perk are set to jump it up for the opening tap, but Marcus doesn't even leave his feet as Perk easily controls the ball; he gets it to Rondo, who passes back to Kendrick at the top of the key and he lobs it inside to Pierce (he easily eludes Melo) for the uncontested layup (2-0 11:56).
Martin then misses the jumper and KG pulls down the rebound; he gets it to Ray, who brings the ball upcourt and passes back to Garnett. He misses the outside "jay", and Melo grabs the loose board; he takes it back the other way and ends up getting double-teamed, so he kicks it out to Camby on the baseline for the wide-open jumper (2-all 11:30).
KG answers with a jumper of his own, then Kleiza tries to get ball to Iverson, but Rondo steps in for the steal and goes coast to coast for an easy layup (6-2 10:55).
Unfazed, Melo hits a three-pointer with Pierce right on his shooting hand, then KG tries the turnaround jumper over Martin and comes up short; luckily, Perk is in position for the offensive rebound over Camby, and Iverson is called for the reach-in foul. It's still Celtics possession, as Garnett knocks down the pullup jumper from the free throw line (8-5 10:11).
At the other end, Melo tries to pass inside to Camby, but the ball ends up going off of Marcus' back; Kenyon is able to recover the loose ball, and tries to take it in for a layup, however Perk just envelops him for the beautiful rejection! Ray picks up the ball and takes it the other way, then makes the sweet no-look pass inside to a hustling KG for the two-hand slam (10-5 9:48)!
Camby banks in a shot off glass over Perkins (he was afraid of another block, I'll wager), then KG is double-teamed so he just throws a pass over his shoulder that goes right to Pierce for another easy layup (12-7 9:20); this is some fun stuff right here ... A basket by Iverson gets Denver back within three, then Pierce misses the shot and Martin pulls down the rebound; he tries to take it upcourt himself (hmm) and passes inside to Melo, but Paul picks it off and gets the ball up to Ray with Kleiza all over him.
Perk sets the pick to free him up, so Ray lets fly from behind the three-point line and the ball rattles in and out (ooh, close one); Kenyon collects another rebound and gives the ball to Iverson, who takes it back the other way and drives right down the lane before being fouled by Perk. That puts him at the line, and "AI" makes both free throws to get the Nuggets back within one (12-11 8:21).
Ray then tries to take it to the basket himself and runs right into Martin, who ties him up for the jump ball; Kenyon wins the tap (no surprise) and gets the ball to Iverson, who passes upcourt to Melo, but Rondo gets another steal and takes it all the way in for the layup (14-11 7:50); so far so good, as Boston is 7-for-11 from the field.
Martin then scores, while at the other end Pierce is left wide open behind the three-point line, but instead goes for the unselfish play and sends a bullet pass inside to Perkins underneath the basket for a wide-open one-hand slam (16-13 7:03).
Iverson then tries to make a crosscourt pass to Kleiza, but it's too high and the ball sails out of bounds; Celts regain possession, and Perk sets the pick on AI to leave Rajon a wide-open path down the lane for yet another layup (18-13 6:44)!
The crowd is happy right now (and so am I), as Camby misses the outside jumper (Denver is 5-for-8 from the field) and Pierce takes down the rebound; he gets the ball upcourt to KG, who tries the fallaway jumper but it's wide right. However, Kevin is able to get his own rebound, and kicks it out to Ray who drives down the lane and is fouled by Martin; not only that, but Camby also goaltends the layup attempt, so Allen heads to the line and makes the free throw to complete the (unconventional) three-point play (21-13 6:00).
Kenyon takes a seat at this point (with two personal fouls) and She-Nene Jenkins comes in to replace him; Melo then hits the pullup "jay" over Pierce, but at the other end KG winds up being covered by Kleiza (heh) when he sees Paul cutting down the lane (Melo has no idea where he is); Garnett passes it to him as Camby switches over to prevent the layup. With the big man blocking his path, Pierce - in one motion, mind you - throws it behind his back (!) to a suddenly wide-open Perkins underneath the basket, who finishes with the strong two-hand slam (23-15 5:31)! Oh, that was a thing of beauty!
The Nuggets call a timeout, and when play resumes Melo tries to pass inside to Nene, but Ray gets a hand on it and Perk comes away with the loose ball; he gets it to Hugh Laurie (just into the game) and he quickly finds Pierce up the floor, who (with Nene covering him) gives the little crossover to leave the big guy glued to the floor as he takes it down the lane for another layup (25-15 4:52); twenty of Boston's 25 points have been from inside the paint (can anyone in Denver say "porous defense"?)
It's a nine-point Celtics advantage with three minutes to go in the quarter, when Nene tries a little spin move to avoid Perk and ends up throwing the ball right to House (six turnovers for the Nuggz); it's back the other way for the Celtics fast break, and Eddie makes a nice bounce pass to Ray who has his layup attempt goaltended by Iverson (29-18 2:54).
Iverson then tries to pull up over House for the quick three-point attempt, but misses; KG tips the loose rebound out to Eddie, who takes it the other way before passing back to Garnett, and he gives a couple of fakes with Nene on his back before sticking the fadeaway jumper (31-18 2:25)! The Celts are now officially on fire, shooting 15-for-21 from the field!
Camby and Pierce trade baskets, then Perk blocks a shot by Melo (someone let out a very audible "Get that shit outta here!") and Anthony goes to the floor to try and get to the loose ball before Ray; however, he only succeeds in knocking the ball out of bounds. That gives Boston back possession, as Denver calls another timeout; when play resumes, The Scals of Justice and Parker Posey are in (Pierce and Perk sit down) while Ray is left wide open for the three-pointer (36-20 1:28)!
Great offensive/defensive performance by the C's thus far, as the quarter ends with the good guys ahead 38 to 22.
SECOND QUARTER
Scals, Allan Tony, House, KG, and Posey start the second quarter, as Yakuza Diawara misses a three-point shot and Tony pulls down the rebound. He gets it to House, who pushes the ball upcourt and finds KG in the corner; he swings it around to Allen, who tries to make a move to the basket, but the defense collapses on him, so he kicks it back out to Garnett who finds House wide open for the trey (41-22 11:22)!
Cousy calls this a "flawless display on offense", while (in contrast) Melo blows the layup attempt and KG snares the rebound; he gets it upcourt to House, who passes to Tony and he waits for Kevin to set up in the paint. Getting the ball to him, Garnett misses the turnaround jumper with Nene on him, but Scals reaches up over Eduardo Najera-cane and tips in the miss (43-22 10:51)!
They're not done yet, as KG steals the ball from Najera (Boston's seventh steal) and gives the ball to Tony, who goes coast to coast before taking it in over Nene for another layup (45-22 10:20)! It's like the Nuggets don't even know what the word "defense" means ...
Another basket by House extends it to a 25-point lead with 9:30 remaining, but at the other end Scals loses sight of Najera and Eduardo makes him pay with the three-point basket (47-25 9:08).
Tony answers with a 15-footer (Who Shot JR Smith just ran away from him on defense), then JR tries to make up for it by driving to the basket but slams hard into Posey, earning the offensive foul call as James hits the floor (and has KG fall on top of him in the ensuing confusion).
Denver calls a timeout with 8:34 remaining, and when play resumes Perk comes back into the game as KG takes his first rest of the night (12 PTS, 7 REB); it's still Boston ball, but Scals tries to pass inside to Posey and it's too high (James actually takes another spill as he dives to try and save the ball from going out of bounds). The Nuggest regain possession off of the turnover, however Kleiza misses the shot and Najera fouls House going for the rebound. He slams the ball down in frustration, which earns a technical foul; Eddie makes the free throw to double up Denver's scoring output (50-25 8:05).
Pierce and Rondo come back into game at this point (Scals and House take a seat) as a layup by Kenyon gets the Nuggets within 23 with 6:30 left in the half. Iverson then steals the ball from Rondo and hustles upcourt before giving it to JR Smith, who barrels his way to the basket (knocking Posey again to the floor). However, he misses the layup attempt, and the loose rebound is knocked out to Perkins, who passes back to Rajon at the other end of the floor. He tries to make a move to the basket, but is covered by Kleiza; instead, he goes for the shovel pass back to Perk (who is wide open for the slam) but the refs whistle Rondo for shuffling his feet and call the travelling violation.
Perk argues the call, but it's Kenyon who winds up receiving a technical (guess something rubbed him the wrong way), so Pierce heads to the foul line with 6:09 remaining but misses the free throw. At this point, KG comes into the game to replace Posey, who's limping off the court and actually goes straight to the locker room (all those falls must have taken their toll) ... Hope he's alright, as it's Denver ball and Iverson makes a nice bounce pass to Kenyon for the layup (53-32 5:51).
Pierce answers with a layup of his own, then Rondo steals the inbounds pass from Camby and throws it up for a waiting KG who finishes with the two-hand slam (57-32 5:02)! That gets the arena pumped up, as at the other end KG winds up for the big-time goaltend of Smith's layup attempt (Cooz: "That's fine, go after it"). Crowd still enjoys the athletic display, while Pierce backs down Kleiza and finishes with the easy layup (59-34 4:32).
Ray then strips Kenyon from behind (sounds dirty) and KG picks up the loose ball; he gets it back to Allen, who passes upcourt to Pierce and he (in turn) lobs it inside to Garnett. He tries to work the baseline to avoid Camby, but instead passes to an open Rondo for the 20-foot jumpshot (61-34 3:59).
Kenyon tries to answer quickly, but misses the layup and then fouls Pierce going for the offensive rebound; that's Martin's fourth foul already (!) so Najera comes back in to replace him as Boston regains possession, and Perk makes the nice lob pass inside to Pierce and Melo is forced to foul him. Paul responds by hitting both free throws (63-34 3:35).
Ray adds two foul shots of his own with two minutes left in the half to get Boston's lead over thirty (!), as the Celts look unbeatable. Meanwhile, Diawara loses control of the ball at the other end, and Rondo picks it up for another steal; he dribbles coast to coast and takes it in over Iverson, but misses the layup. Diawara collects the rebound and gives it to AI, who takes it back the other way but is tripped up by Rondo (that's a foul on Rajon, as House comes back into the game to replace him). When play resumes, Melo shoots up an airball (!) which Perk is able to scoop up and passes to House; he gets the ball to Ray, as Pierce sets the little screen on Diawara which frees up Ray for the three-pointer (68-34 1:20)!
At the other end, Iverson lowers his head and drives right into Perk's chest; refs give the call to AI (as Heinsohn bemoans the little-man bias), so Allen steps to the line where he makes his first free throw but misses the second. Garnett grabs the rebound (14 PTS, 10 REB) and gets the ball upcourt to Ray, who passes to Pierce and he gives the fake to avoid Melo and knocks down the pullup jumper (70-35 :57.8); Paul is now 7-for-8 from the field!
Iverson scores on the layup, but at the other end Melo bumps Pierce away from the ball; Denver's over the limit, so Paul goes to the line and makes the first foul shot but misses his second. However, Camby tips the rebound right back to Pierce, who steps behind the three-point line and buries it (74-37 :40.1); they can do no wrong ... We enter halftime with the Celtics dominating, 77 to 38!
Yes, you read that right, 77 points in the first half (31-43 FG). Throw in 19 assists and 11 steals for the team as a whole, and you can make the argument that the Celts are playing damn-near perfect basketball thus far ...
THIRD QUARTER
Martin hits a turnaround jumper over Perk to open the second half, while at the other end Pierce misses a wide-open shot and Camby corrals the loose board. He gets the ball upcourt to Iverson, who finds Melo in the corner and he hits the pullup "jay" over Pierce (77-42 11:13) ... Okay, time to nip this thing in the bud, as Ray makes a nice bullet pass inside to Perk and (with nobody on him) he finishes with the strong two-handed dunk (79-42 10:48).
Ray then knocks the ball out of Kleiza's hands (good, let's not lose that defensive intensity guys); Perk picks it up and gives it to Rondo, who goes back the other way and passes inside to KG. Kevin then sees Rajon cutting to the basket, so he tries to make the bounce pass, but Rondo can't catch it cleanly; he's able to recover the ball, however, and kicks it out to Pierce. Paul then drives to basket and fakes a pass out to Perk (which gets Melo looking in the wrong direction) before finishing with the reverse layup (81-42 10:16); man, Melo is looking pretty foolish on the defensive end tonight.
Nuggest are able to cut the lead to 35 with 7:20 remaining (I'm shaking in my boots) when Camby just elbows Rondo to the floor; man, that wasn't even a pick, he just swung the elbow and leveled him (not sure why that wasn't a flagrant). KG comes over to give Marcus a few choice words, as AI gives Rajon a little pat on the head (hmm); it's still Boston ball, as Rondo steps up and sets a pick on Camby get KG open (no fear in this kid) and Kevin buries the jumper (85-48 7:07).
At the other end, Rondo strips Iverson of the ball (14th steal for Boston) and AI bumps him out of bounds; the refs whistle him for the foul (his fourth) so Boston retains possession. Pierce drives the baseline to draw in the defense (if you can call it a "defense" at this point), then kicks it out to Ray for another three-pointer (88-48 6:27)!
I think we can pretty much call the game at this point, as Pierce misses a pullup jumper over Camby with 4:40 left in the quarter; Kenyon grabs the rebound and tries to pass to Iverson, but Paul picks it off and then throws up the alleyoop pass to KG for the one-hand slam (91-51 4:32) that sends the crowd into a frenzy! Seriously, I thought that pass was too high for Kevin to be able to catch, but he just elevated and went after that sucker ... Celts are just rolling, as we enter the final stanza with a 37-point lead (103-66).
FOURTH QUARTER
KG, Ray, House, Scals, and Tony are on the floor to start the final quarter (I'm surprised we're not emptying the bench at this point, unless Rivers wants to emulate the New England Patriots and run up the lead to 50) ... Meanwhile, Ray works the baseline and goes in between two defenders for the layup (105-66 11:42); Tommy: "That's like watching a wave come in from the ocean and just slowly hit the beach".
When Mister Heinsohn is waxing poetic about the ocean, you know the game is pretty much over ... However, Najera is left wide open for a layup of his own, as the Nuggets have run off seven straight points (105-73 9:43) to try and bring some respectability to the final score.
Of course, Doc isn't fazed, as Ray and KG finally head to the bench with 9:11 on the clock, while Rondo and Glen "Macrosomia" Davis are subbed in. When play resumes, House airballs a three-pointer (whoopsie), then Scals is knocked to the floor by Najera (no call) which leaves Martin open for the dunk (105-75 8:41).
Rondo makes a basket to break the C's scoring drought, while at the other end Kenyon spins around "Big Baby" but misses the hook shot; Tony grabs the rebound and gives it to Rondo, who takes it upcourt and tries to drive down the lane against Smith but is stripped of the ball. We head back the other way, but JR mishandles the ball and Davis winds up with the steal; he takes it upcourt himself (which is an amusing sight) and finds Tony who (in turn) passes to Scalabrine for the three-pointer (110-75 6:58).
Von-illa Wafer then scores as the crowd is working on a "Scal-a-BREE-nee!" chant; what a difference a year makes, huh? Anyway, that seems to pump Brian up as he goes for another three-point shot (about two feet behind the line) and completely misses the rim. Tee-hee ...
At the other end, Wafer misses the shot and House comes away with rebound; he passes upcourt to Rondo, and he gets the ball inside to Davis, who tries to score over Kenyon but comes up with another airball (yikes). Smith comes away with the ball as we go back the other way, and he finds Bobby "For Apples" Jones for the three-pointer (110-80 5:40).
A basket by Steven Hunter and Gatherer gets Denver within the twenties (GASP!), while at the other end the Celts can't get a shot off so it's a 24-second violation; the Nuggets regain possession, but Smith blows the layup attempt and Leon Powe Powe Power Wheels (just into the game for Scals) grabs the rebound and passes to Rondo. He gets the ball inside to Davis, who drives down the lane for the layup, PLUS he's fouled by Hunter and makes the free throw for the three-point play as Cooz dubs him a "budding Charles Barkley" (113-82 3:32).
And that's about all I gotta say about that ... Celts win big, 119 to 92.
FINAL SCORE: Boston 119, Denver 92
GAME RATING:
20
KILLER
BOSTON TOP PERFORMERS:
- Pierce: 29 MIN, 26 PTS (10-15 FG), 5 REB, 5 AST, 5 STL
- Garnett: 36 MIN, 23 PTS (10-14 FG), 13 REB, 7 AST, 4 STL
- R. Allen :32 MIN, 22 PTS (8-12 FG, 3-7 3PTers), 6 AST, 2 STL
- Rondo: 33 MIN, 14 PTS (7-11 FG), 4 AST, 3 TO, 4 STL
- House: 24 MIN, 11 PTS (4-9 FG), 6 REB, 3 AST
- Iverson: 32 MIN, 22 PTS (6-11 FG, 8-11 FT), 4 AST, 4 TO, 3 STL
- Camby: 29 MIN, 17 PTS (7-11 FG), 8 REB
- Martin: 26 MIN, 12 PTS (6-13 FG), 5 REB
POST-GAME NOTES:
- The Nuggets used garbage time to get their overall shooting percentage up to 46 percent (34-74 FG) ... However, the Celtics still lead the league in opponents' field-goal percentage (39.5 percent)!
- The diagnosis for James Posey is that he's suffering from back spasms; he did not return to this game and his status for the near-future is unknown.
- Speaking of injuries, Nene sprained his left thumb in the second quarter, and also did not return ...
- Melo is the third leading scorer in the NBA thus far (27.3 PPG) but only managed 11 tonight (3-13 FG).
- Garnett was tonight's Tommy Award winner.
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