November 16, 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
Heat Starting Lineup: Dywyaynyey Wade, Jason "The Wigga" Williams, Banana Shaquari, Cult of Udonis Haslem, Ricky DAVE_US.222
Man, talk about your role reversals.
The Miami Heat, just a couple of years removed from an NBA championship, are currently struggling through a 1-7 start to the season; it's gotten so bad that 62-year-old head coach Dr. Riley would rather suit up himself (palmbeachpost.com) than watch his players stink up the court any longer:
"I should play. I guarantee you I should suit up. I'd play better than some of them right now. I guarantee you. I swear to God. With an old hip, 62 years old, can't fucking see. I'll play better than some of my guys tonight. Come on!"Even the return of their "savior", Dwyane Wade, on Wednesday could not turn the tide and get them a victory against the (at the time) 0-8 Seattle Sonics ... and not to go off on a tangent, but I still think there's a little more hype than substance with this guy; he's a great player, no doubt, but he's still not at "super-duper-star" status in my eyes. You put Pierce on that Heat roster back in 2005 in place of Wade, and they would be gunning for their third straight title right now, believe me.
But enough of that, let's turn our eyes to the Boston Celtics - the laughingstock of the league just last season (with taunts of tanking for lottery position ringing in the fans' ears). Yet now, they're going for their eighth straight victory to start the season, a feat that has only been accomplished in the annals of Celtics history three other times:
1972-'73 (Final regular season record: 68-14)
1964-'65 (Final regular season record: 62-18)
1957-'58 (Final regular season record: 49-23)
1964-'65 (Final regular season record: 62-18)
1957-'58 (Final regular season record: 49-23)
While it may seem like the perfect opportunity for another laughably easy victory, this is no time to start getting cocky ... Wade will be making his first start of the season, Shaq just might be playing with a chip on his shoulder after getting "called out" by his backcourt mate (sports.espn.go.com), and we can't forget about the newest Heat players (Ricky Davis and Mark "Philly" Blount) and the lingering bad feelings they must still be harboring against their former club.
FIRST QUARTER
Perk beats Shaq on the opening tip, and the ball finds its way into Rondo's hands; he passes to Ray, who misses the shot and Haslem grabs the rebound. He gets it upcourt to Williams, who passes to Wade and he gets the ball inside to Shaq. The big man then tries to back down Perkins, but KG comes over for the double-team, so he makes a nice pass inside to Udonis for the layup (0-2 11:23).
Garnett then tries a fallaway jumper over Haslem, but comes up short and Shaq controls the board. He passes up ahead to Wade, who tries to drive down the lane and Allen is called for the reach-in foul; it's still Heat ball, and Haslem knocks down the pullup "jay" over Garnett (0-4 10:38).
Pierce hits a jumpshot (with Ricky in his face) at the 10:22 mark to put Boston in the scoring column, while at the other end Wade passes inside to Shaq and he just bowls over Garnett; no foul is called, but O'Neal still misses the layup. However, he gets his own rebound and finishes with the thunderous two-hand slam that nearly pulls down the entire backboard (2-6 10:05); yeah, he might be a tad pissed tonight ... Two free throws by Shaq (one of them he banks in!) with 9:13 to go gives Miami a six-point advantage, then Rondo dribbles a lot of time off the clock before giving the ball to KG to try and work his magic. Haslem and Williams surround him, and he's forced to put up a difficult shot to beat the shot clock, but Jason bails him out as he commits the foul; that puts Kevin at the line, where he makes both free throws (4-8 8:50).
Davis then misses a three-point attempt, but Shaq grabs the offensive rebound (Miami right now is dominating the boards 6 to 1); he tries to score on the putback, but can't connect and KG comes away with the carom. He passes upcourt to Rondo, who finds Pierce in the corner and he swings the ball around to Ray; the good ball movement continues, as Allen finds Perk in the paint, but he misses the short jumpshot and Haslem has himself the loose 'bound. He gives the ball to Williams, who takes it up the floor, then (with Shaq setting a pick to take Rondo out of the picture) finds himself open for the 20-footer (4-10 7:58); the Heat are shooting 50 percent from the floor thus far (4-8 FG).
KG scores with the jumper (the Celts, meanwhile, are just 2-for-7 shooting), but Wade quickly answers as Pierce leaves him wide open for the outside shot (6-12 7:27).
Ray then makes a nice pass inside to KG, as Shaq goes over to try and stop the layup, but commits the foul instead so Garnett gets to make two more free throws to get Boston back within four (8-12 7:19).
Wade again fires right back, driving down the lane to draw in the defense before finding Shaq for another dunk. At the other end, Pierce tries to work the baseline but is covered by Davis, so he kicks it out to Allen for the three-pointer (11-14 6:41).
Shaq is then called for the travelling violation trying to back down Perk, as the Celts regain possession and KG scores on the turnaround jumper over Haslem (13-14 6:16).
Wade buries the outside "jay" at the halfway mark of the quarter to put Miami back up by three, then Ray takes it to the basket right into Shaq's chest (brave man) and draws the foul; that's O'Neal's second, so the Heat call timeout as the big man heads to the bench and Zo Money comes into the game to replace him. Meanwhile, Ray knocks down both free throws (15-16 5:49).
Wade then misses, and Perk grabs the rebound; he gets the ball upcourt to Rondo, who finds Pierce and he slashes his way down the lane for the layup to put Boston ahead (17-16 5:28). Davis answers with a jumper, but then KG backs down Haslem and hits the shot right in his face (19-18 4:54); that's ten points already for Garnett.
Celts are starting to heat up, as Ray misses the three-point attempt with 3:30 remaining, but Rondo sneaks in between two Heat players for the offensive rebound and scores the layup to give Boston a three-point lead. Miami calls another timeout, and when play resumes Wade misses the jumper and KG gets himself another rebound (his 4th); he gets it upcourt to Rajon and he finds Allen spotting up in the paint. He's immediately double-teamed, so Allen simply passes inside to Perk for the wide-open dunk (23-18 2:23)! Now the crowd is into it big time.
Both teams go to their bench in the closing moments, as Scotty 2 Hotty, The Scals of Justice, and former Heat player Parker Posey are into the game (Ray, KG, and Perk sit down) ...
Meanwhile, it's a four point game with 1:20 on the clock when Pierce has his layup attempt blocked by Zo (not bad for an old man with one kidney) and Smush-Mouth Parker collects the loose ball and pushes it other way; he finds Haslem in the corner, who passes inside to Zo with Pollard covering him. He can't score, but gets his own rebound and goes back up for the layup while being fouled by Scalabrine; he makes the free throw to complete the three-point play (24-23 :50.8).
In their final possession of the quarter, Rondo misses the jumpshot, while at the other end Scals again fouls Zo as he's going to the basket (d'oh!). That puts Mourning back on the line with 0.8 seconds on the clock, and he makes one-of-two foul shots to tie the score at 24 apiece at the end of one.
SECOND QUARTER
Scals, Pollard, Posey, Ray, and Hugh Laurie are in to start the quarter ... Meanwhile, Davis misses a three-point attempt, and Pollard pulls down the rebound. He gets it to House, who dribbles upcourt before trying to make the pass to Scalabrine, but he has trouble controlling the ball and ends up being surrounded by Haslem and Zo. That forces the travelling violation, as Miami regains possession and Smush hits the floater in the lane (24-26 11:15).
House then has his shot blocked by Parker, but Pollard collects the loose ball and finds Posey in the corner, who gives the bounce pass right back to Scotty as he's driving to the basket and draws the foul on Haslem while scoring the layup! Nice move by the big man, as he makes the free throw to complete the three-point play (27-26 10:22).
Blount comes into the game at this point for Haslem (to a rain of boos from the crowd) and Shaq returns in place of Zo ... Inspector Gadget's Niece then misses a jumper, and House comes away with the rebound. He pushes it upcourt and tries to finish with the no-look pass inside to Pollard, but he can't catch it and the ball goes out of bounds; that's Boston's fourth turnover, as Miami regains possession but can't capitalize with Blount shooting up an airball (to the delight of the crowd).
Pollard grabs the rebound and gets it upcourt to Ray, who drives around Hardaway and goes in for the reverse layup but Shaq is there for the block. Blount controls the loose ball and passes to Smush, who takes it back the other way and gives the ball to Shaq under the basket; he tries to muscle his way inside against Pollard (poor Scotty), but House knocks the ball out of his hands and Ray comes away with it.
That starts the 2-on-1 Celtics fast break, as Allen passes to Eddie and he looks to have an easy layup ... but Parker (the only defender back) grabs Ray just as he makes the pass, so the refs stop the play and waive off the basket (boo).
It's still Celtics ball with 9:01 on the clock, as KG and Perkins are back in the game (the two white boys take a seat), but House misses a three-point shot and Blount snares the rebound. He gives it to Wade (also back into the game), and he tries to take it coast to coast and right to the basket against KG; Kevin is able to alter the shot and cause him to miss, but Dwyane's forward momentum moves Garnett away from the basket, which leaves a big gaping hole in the paint that Shaq's copious girth is able to fill and he finishes with the two-handed slammer (27-28 8:43).
Perk then scores off the nice pass from Ray, while at the other end Shaq tries to back down Kendrick but instead kicks it out to an open Parker who buries the trey (29-31 8:13).
Posey answers with a three-ball of his own to put Boston back ahead, then Wade tries to make the pass to Blount but he completely misses his cue and the ball goes into the backcourt for a violation (Gorman: "That's the kind of turnover that will turn [Pat Riley] all sorts of different colors") ... Celts regain possession with 7:40 to go as Allan Tony comes into the game, but has his first shot attempt blocked by Smush and Shaq gets the loose ball. He then makes the fullcourt pass to Wade, but he just falls down (not sure what happened there) and Ray recovers for the turnover. He gets it back up to Tony, who tries to pass inside to KG but Anfernee tips the ball out of bounds.
During the stoppage of play, Tony gets the quick hook as Pierce comes back into the game to replace him (I guess he did something in those 30 seconds that Glenn Rivers M.D. wasn't impressed with). Anyway, Ray misses the jumper (it's another slow start for him as he's missed six of his first seven shots) and Blount corrals the loose board; he gets the ball to Parker, who passes inside to Shaq and he hits the hook shot over the outstretched hand of Perkins (32-33 6:45).
O'Neal is then called for the defensive three-second violation, and Ray makes the free throw with 6:25 on the clock to tie the score at 33 apiece ... It's still Celtics ball, as Pierce tries the fallaway jumper over Hardaway that misses (Boston is shooting 3-for-11 from the field in this quarter) and Wade comes up with the rebound. He proceeds to go coast to coast and takes it to the basket, where he is fouled by Allen and makes both of his free throws to break the tie (33-35 6:07).
Garnett then misses, but gets his own rebound and tries to take it back in for the layup; Shaq hits him from behind (it was a late whistle but they caught him) for his third foul, and Kevin makes both of his freebies (35-all 5:58).
O'Neal stays in the game, while Anfernee misses the outside jumper and KG beats Shaq to the boards for the rebound. He gets it upcourt to Rondo, who finds Pierce and he passes back to Garnett for the pullup "jay" over Blount (37-35 5:32).
At the other end, Wade throws the upfake to get Pierce in the air, then takes the contact while shooting to draw the foul (Paul's second); Dwyane steps to the line with 5:09 on the clock but misses both foul shots (!) and Allen gets the rebound as no harm is done (except for the foul on Pierce) ... Allen takes it upcourt himself, then takes it right at Shaq (a wise move, as the big man doesn't want to pick up his fourth), before kicking it out to KG for the open jumper (39-35 4:57); Boston now has 11 assists on 13 made baskets!
Zo comes back in at this point to replace Shaq, as Wade buries the turnaround shot over Pierce to get the Heat within two. At the other end, Pierce tries to back down Dwyane and Zo comes over to help, but he only succeeds in fouling Paul as he's scoring the layup (smooth move). That puts Pierce at the line, where he makes the free throw to complete the three-point play (42-37 3:42).
Miami calls a timeout, and when play resumes Williams finds an open Ricky Davis for the three-point basket (42-40 3:25).
Pierce can't answer with a three-pointer of his own, but Perkins gets the offensive rebound and kicks it out to Rondo, who finds Ray behind the three-point line and he buries it (45-40 2:48)!
Crowd is fired up, however at the other end Pierce fouls Wade in the act of shooting; that's Paul's third foul, so Tony comes back into the game (let's see how long he lasts this time) while Dwyane steps to the line and makes one-of-two free throws (45-41 2:34).
A basket by Rondo (off the nice feed from KG) gives Boston the six-point advantage with 2:20 left in the half. Haslem then misses the shot, and Garnett tips the loose rebound out to Ray, who takes it upcourt and passes inside to Perk. However, he can't set up proper position against Zo and (perhaps fearing a three-second call) kicks it back out to Ray who hits the little tear drop in the lane (49-41 1:52); that's 11 points for Allen as he's starting to find his rhythm.
At the other end, Williams tries to get the ball to Wade but he hits the deck (looks like Dwyane tripped over Shaq's feet as the big man was trying to set a pick on Tony) and the ball goes out of bounds (Miami's seventh turnover, 5th of the quarter). Boston regains possession with a chance to make it a double-digit lead, but Ray tries to pass the ball to Rondo and he can't get to it in time, so he tries to pull the old trick of throwing the ball off an opposing player while falling out of bounds ... However, his aim is a little off, as he misses Haslem and actually throws it off Perk (whoops).
That gives Miami back possession, and Davis takes full advantage by knocking down the trey (49-44 1:08); Ricky must be enjoying himself, as he's tied with Shaq as the Heat's leading scorer (10 PTS). Zo is then called for a defensive three-second violation and starts arguing with the call (Cousy: "I noticed as we get older, we don't get in better moods") ... Ray makes the free throw, as it's still Boston possession, and Allen drives past Hardaway for the layup (52-44 :40.3) and his 14th points of the night.
Wade hits the step-back "jay" over Tony in closing moments, but the C's are still sporting a six-point lead (52-46) at halftime.
THIRD QUARTER
Wade gets away with a double dribble to open the quarter, and passes inside to Shaq for the layup with 11:40 on the clock. At the other end, Ray drives down the lane and knocks down Haslem to draw the offensive foul call; the Heat regain possession, and Wade passes to Udonis for the jumpshot that bounces off the front of the rim before dropping in (52-50 11:08).
KG answers with the strong one-hand slam to try and quell Miami's mini-surge, then Wade shoots up an airball (ha HA!) and Pierce grabs the rebound. He gives it to Ray, who passes upcourt to Rondo and he finishes with the bounce pass inside to Perk for another one-handed dunk (56-50 10:23)!
Unfortunately, Pierce then fouls Davis as he's driving down the lane; that's his fourth (!) so Posey comes in at 9:56 to replace him. Meanwhile, Williams misses a three-point attempt and KG nabs the loose board; he gets the ball upcourt to Rondo, who tries to drive down the lane but Haslem gets in the way and Rajon ends up dribbling the ball of his own foot out of bounds.
Miami regains possession, but Udonis misses the jumper and Rondo takes the carom. He brings it up the floor himself, then spies Perkins in the paint being covered by Wade (!); that's an opportunity too good to pass up, so he gets the ball to Kendrick and he just packs Dwyane in and easily scores the layup (58-50 9:16).
Haslem answers with a basket of his own, then Perk tries to take it down the lane but has his shot rejected by Shaq out of bounds (that's Miami's sixth block compared to just one for Boston); it's still Celtics possession, but Ray goes for the three-point shot and Wade undercuts him (no call) which causes him to miss the shot badly. Shaq controls the rebound, and makes a fullcourt pass to the hustling Wade and Rondo is forced to tie him up to prevent the easy basket; that still puts Dwyane at the line, though, and he makes both foul shots (58-54 7:59).
Garnett and O'Neal trade baskets (Shaq is showing some signs of life in his old age, as he has 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting with 8 rebound), then KG makes a nice pass inside to Perk who is all alone (Shaq had to come over and cover Kevin) for the layup (62-56 6:25).
At the other end, Wade tries to make a bounce pass inside to Haslem, but the ball goes right between his legs and out of bounds. Boston regains possession, however Posey throws a bad pass intended for KG that ends up right in Shaq's hands; he gives it to Williams who walks it back up the floor, then passes to Parker who tries the pullup jumper and comes up short. Ray ends up with the loose rebound, and gets it up ahead to Garnett, who passes inside to Perkins; he tries to make a move on Shaq, but ends up dribbling the ball off his knee (d'oh!). Luckily, Rondo is in the perfect position to save the ball, and goes in for the layup PLUS he draws the foul on Smush; he adds the free throw to complete the three-point play and put Boston up by nine (65-56 5:01).
Williams then makes a bad pass to Davis in the backcourt that Posey easily picks off, and he gets the ball to Rondo who gives it right back to James for the loud one-hand slam (67-56 4:52)! That gets the crowd pumped up .. Smush hits a three-pointer to quiet them down somewhat, although he comes up hobbling (he landed on Rondo's foot coming down from the shot). Rajon tries to take advantage by using his speed against Parker, as Wade comes over to help on defense, but that leaves Posey wide open for the trey of his own (70-59 3:51).
Davis then tries to answer but misses his three-point attempt, and KG gets the rebound. He gets the ball upcourt to Rondo, but Perk is called for the offensive foul setting a screen on Smush (hasn't the poor kid been through enough?); Miami takes the opportunity to call a timeout with 3:19 on the clock, as Tae-Daequan-Do Cook comes in to replace Parker.
When play resumes, Wade drives to the basket and draws the foul on Perk (his third), so he goes to the line but misses both free throws (heh). Posey then passes to Rondo, who gets the ball inside to Kendrick, and (rather then forcing the issue) he finds James cutting to the basket and he finishes with the layup (72-59 2:54); great ball movement - that's what she said - as the Celts have eight assists on their nine field goals in this this quarter!
A basket by KG (22 PTS) with 2:13 to go makes it a 15-point lead, as Boston may have finally broken this game wide open ... Wade and Ray trade baskets, then Dwyane makes the alleyoop pass to Davis for the two hand slam (76-63 :44.9); Gorman: "That used to be the only thing we could cheer about a couple years ago!"
Scals (just into the game) then has his pass to Posey stolen by Haslem, who gets it upcourt to Wade and he passes inside to Cook for the too-easy layup (76-65 :21.9) ... Brian airballs a three-point shot in the closing moments (ugh), but Boston still has an 11-point advantage (76-65) and is dominating in assists (24 to 14) and rebounds (31 to 25).
FOURTH QUARTER
Pierce is back in the game to start the final quarter, alongside Scals, Pollard, House, and Posey ... Meanwhile, Scalabrine loses control of the ball, which Wade dutifully picks up and tries to take it back the other way; he's fouled by Posey, putting himself at the line where he makes both free throws (76-67 11:48).
Pierce answers with a jumper (he now has 10 points), then Haslem miss the shot and Posey goes for the loose rebound; he's falling out of bounds, so tries to throw the ball off Zo's leg, but the refs say he was already over the line (Heinsohn: "That's a Tommy Point anyway!").
So, Miami retains possession, but Williams misses the layup attempt (!) and House comes away with the board. He gets the ball upcourt to Ray, who drives down the lane before kicking it out to Posey for the three-point basket (81-67 11:02)! That's now 25 assists on 30 made baskets for Boston; amazing.
A basket by Zo gets the Heat within twelve with 7:30 remainign in the game, while at the other end Garnett backs down Mourning before passing out to Posey for another three-point attempt ... The shot misses, though, and Cook nabs the rebound, getting the ball upcourt to Davis in the lane for the pullup "jay" (86-76 6:56).
Doc decides that a timeout would be appropriate at this time, and when play resumes Boston's starting five are back on the court ... However, Allen misses the shot and Shaq gets the rebound; he passes to Wade who goes coast to coast and in for the layup (86-78 6:26). Yikes, Miami is shooting 5-for-8 from the field in the quarter, I'm starting to get a little nervous.
Rondo then drives down the lane for a layup, but Perk tips it in while the ball is still in the cylinder, so waive off the basket as that's an offensive goaltending call ... The Heat regain possession, as Williams passes inside to Shaq, but some nice defense by Perkins causes the miss and KG corrals the rebound. He finds Rondo up the floor, and he gets the ball to Pierce inside, who tries to back down Cook but instead kicks it back out to Rondo; Rajon then drives to the basket, but Jason steps in his path and draws the offensive foul call (that's Boston's fourth turnover of the quarter).
Miami once again has a chance to inch closer, but Cook misses the three-point attempt (whew!) and Garnett gets another rebound ... Ray then goes for a three-point attempt of his own, but the shot is off the mark and the ball bounces out of bounds; sheesh!
It's once again Heat ball with 4:56 left in the game, as Davis drives down the lane and Garnett is forced to come over to halt his forward progress; Ricky then passes inside to Shaq and he finishes with another strong two-hand slam (86-80 4:37).
At the other end, Pierce throws up an airball (!) and Wade comes away with the loose ball; he dribbles coast to coast but knocks down Posey (no foul called) and in the ensuing confusion he finds Cook underneath the basket for a layup (86-82 4:09).
That signals another timeout from Rivers, and when play resumes KG tries to pass inside to Pierce but Ricky knocks the ball way and Williams picks it up (17 turnovers for Boston). He heads back the other way, then passes back to the trailer Davis who hits the three-pointer with Pierce all over him (86-85 3:39)! Oh man ...
At the other end, Shaq fouls KG to stop the play ... however, that doesn't stop Kevin from taking it right to the basket and dunking over Haslem! Sure, it doesn't count - and KG might've pulled a "Tony Allen" if he wasn't careful - but the crowd enjoys seeing that passion (and they enjoy Shaq's fourth foul). When play resumes, Pierce tries to pass inside to KG but it's too high and Cook picks it off (ugh).
Heinsohn sputters "This is not finishing a game the way you have to finish a game!" as it's Heat ball; Cook tries to make the bounce pass inside to Shaq, but House is able to make the steals (11 turnovers for Miami). He takes it upcourt himself and finds Posey spotting up behind the three-point line ... that shot misses (dammit!) and Davis grabs the rebound. He gets the ball to Wade, who takes it back the other way and the Heat call a 20-second timeout with 2:39 to go.
When play resumes, Wade is covered by Posey and Pierce comes over for the double-team, but Dwyane is still able to pass inside to Shaq and KG is forced to grab him; that puts Shaq at the line at the 2:24 mark, where he misses the first free throw and then clanks the second! Posey grabs the rebound ... no wait, Pierce was called for the lane violation (shit), so O'Neal gets another chance and this time he makes it to tie the score (86-all 2:24); Heinsohn: "The Celtics have done innumerable non-intelligent things here in this game!"
At the other end, Ray slices down the lane and is fouled by Shaq (his fifth) while going for the layup, so a more dependable free-throw shooter takes his place at the line and - naturally - makes both freebies to put Boston back ahead (88-86 2:08); the Celts have been near-perfect from the line tonight (17-18 FT) while the Heat ... have not (15-25 FT).
Davis then misses a three-point attempt, and Rondo goes up high for the rebound. He takes it back the other way, and finds Ray who slices down the lane heading to the basket; Williams comes over to help on defense, so Allen passes back to Rajon alone in the corner and - without hesitation - he takes the 15-foot jumper and buries it (90-86 1:35)! Who says Rondo can't shoot?!?
Miami calls a timeout, and when play resumes Wade goes for the three-point shot but misses, and both Pierce and Haslem dive out of bounds for the loose rebound ... The refs say that Paul was the last to touch it (excuse me?!) so the Heat regain possession and Wade drives down the lane, but Posey knocks the ball out of his hands and out of bounds. The Heat have yet another chance with 7 seconds on the shot clock, as Williams inbounds to Wade who takes it right at KG for the layup (90-88 1:09).
On the next possession, Ray is double-teamed by Cook and Haslem, which causes Allen to cough up the ball and Cook takes it coast to coast and goes in over Posey for the one-hand dunk PLUS the foul (not a smart move by James); that ties the score at 90 apiece with 53.1 seconds left on the clock and Cook has a chance to give Miami the lead. However, he misses the free throw (!) and Haslem fouls Pierce going for the rebound.
Miami is not yet over the limit, so Boston retains possession and Paul makes the nice behind-the-back dribble to avoid Cook and goes in for the layup attempt but front-rims it! Oh man, KG then fouls Haslem (I think that he thought that Boston had a foul to give) so Udonis heads to the line where he makes his first free throws but misses the second (90-91 :33.5); Garnett grabs the rebound and the Celts immediately call timeout.
When play resumes, Pierce inbounds the ball to Posey and he swings it around to Ray, who passes back inside to Pierce and he gives the upfake to get Haslem in the air and scores on the layup (92-91 :25.0).
Now Miami calls the timeout, with one final chance at the game-winner ... Williams inbounds the ball to Wade, who dribbles down the clock (he wants to build the tension) and with six seconds left pulls up over Posey and backrims the shot! James comes away with the rebound and Haslem grabs him as the buzzer sounds ... At first the refs signal that Posey has to go to the line, but then they go to instant replay to determine whether any time was left on the clock.
After a quick conference, the refs rule that time ran out before Udonis got to him, so the Celts barely escape with the 92-91 victory ...
FINAL SCORE: Boston 92, Miami 91
GAME RATING:
10
PULLING A WIGGUM
BOSTON TOP PERFORMERS:
- Garnett: 40 MIN, 26 PTS (10-14 FG, 6-6 FT), 11 REB, 4 AST
- R. Allen: 45 MIN, 19 PTS (5-15 FG, 2-5 3PTers, 7-7 FT), 7 AST
- Posey: 27 MIN, 13 PTS (5-8 FG, 3-6 3PTers), 5 REB, 2 AST
- Pierce: 30 MIN, 12 PTS (5-12 FG), 4 REB, 4 AST, 4 TO
- Rondo: 37 MIN, 9 PTS (4-7 FG), 10 AST, 2 TO, 7 REB
- Wade: 38 MIN, 23 PTS (8-15 FG), 6 AST
- Davis: 42 MIN, 20 PTS (8-18 FG), 4 REB
- O'Neal: 26 MIN, 17 PTS (7-10 FG), 9 REB, 2 BLK
POST-GAME NOTES:
- Boston had seven of their 18 turnovers in that fourth quarter ... ouch.
- Pierce struggled somewhat tonight, but it was revealed after the game that he was suffering from a strained back and it was a gametime decision whether he would even play or not.
- Posey was tonight's Tommy Award winner.
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