December 21, 2007
7:00 PM EST (Comcast SportsNet)
TD Banknorth Garden (Boston, MA)
Announcers: Mike An-Gorman-agement and Tommy "Want to Touch the" Heinsohn ; Gary PoonTanguay and Donny "We Are" Marshall (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
Bulls Starting Lineup: Gordon Shumway, Hinrich Maneuver, "Generic Name" Smith, Andres Nocioni-Link, God-Deng
Okay, the Celtics lost to the Detroit Pistons ... Yes, the team fell to a quality Eastern Conference opponent, but it's time to move on.
Of course, this gives the naysayers more ammunition to rant and rave that the Celts can't beat anyone of consequence when those teams are at full strength ... And those same people won't be silenced tonight, as the Bulls (besides the fact that they're not very good at 9-14) will be without the services of Ben Wallace and Gromit (bone spurs in foot).
So, even if the C's blow the Bulls out by fifty, it won't be enough to satisfy some people.
Meh, screw those people, I wanna see the Celts blow somebody's ass out tonight!
FIRST QUARTER
KG hits a 20-foot jumper to open the game, then Deng misses the shot but the refs say the loose rebound goes off Garnett out of bounds; that gives Chicago back possession, as Gordon eludes Allen and knocks down the pullup jumper (2-all 10:23).
Ray answers with a jumper of his own (leaving Nocioni in the dust), but Ben comes right back with the 15-footer (4-all 9:05).
Allen then misses (Boston is 2-for-6 from the field already) and Nocioni grabs the rebound; he takes it upcourt himself, but Rondo strips him and takes it back the other way for the dunk (6-4 8:44); nice.
Gordon throws down the slam (Chicago is 3-for-8 from the floor), while at the other end Pierce drives down the lane and is bumped by Ben; that puts him at the line, where he makes both free throws (8-6 8:05).
Nocioni tries to answer, but comes up short on the shot, and Paul pulls down the rebound (his third). He passes upcourt to Rondo, who gets the ball inside to Garnett; he's immediately double-teamed, so he simply passes off to Perkins for the layup (10-6 7:43).
Deng and Garnett trade baskets, then Nocioni backrims the three-point attempt and Pierce hauls off another rebound. He dribbles up the floor himself, then passes to Perk, who tries to get the ball inside to KG but he can't make a clean catch ... No worries, though, as Kevin is able to recover and kicks it out to Allen for the three-pointer (15-8 6:26).
A basket by Nocioni (thanks to a goaltending call on Pierce) cuts Boston's lead to five with 5:30 remaining in the quarter. At the other end, Paul drives down the lane (drawing in the defense) and makes the nice pass inside to Perk, who finishes with the easy layup (17-10 5:11).
Chicago calls a timeout, and when play resumes Nocioni misses the hook shot over Perk, and Pierce controls the loose board (his sixth rebound!). He passes to Rondo, who takes it upcourt, then passes to Allen; he tries the pullup jumpshot over Nocioni, but comes up short and Aarondalf the Gray collects the rebound.
Now we head back the other way, but Deng clanks the outside shot and KG nabs the 'bound ... He passes upcourt to Rondo, who finds Allen all alone for the three-point attempt. That too misses, but Perkins has the offensive board (Boston is currently outrebounding Chicago 11 to 3!) and kicks it out to Garnett. He quickly gets the ball back inside to Perk, where he's fouled by Gray going for the shot, so he steps to the line and makes 1-of-2 free throws (18-10 3:37).
At the other end, Perk is called for the defensive 3-second violation, so Gordon takes the free throw at the 3:23 but misses it (heh) ... While that's going on, Parker Posey comes in to give Garnett an early rest. Meanwhile, Gray makes the nice bounce pass inside to Smith, who converts on the layup (18-12 3:12).
Pierce then tries to work on Deng, as he gives the upfake to get Luol in the air ... His plan works, as Deng bumps him while hoisting up the fallaway jumpshot, and he's still able to knock it down! Unfortunately, he can't complete the three-point play, as his free throw rims out (20-12 2:59).
Nocioni then misses the three-point attempt, and Ray winds up with the rebound. He passes to Rondo, who brings the ball upcourt, then gets it inside to Pierce; he tries to back down Nocioni and force up the shot, but Gray is able to get the block and Tyrus "Edney" Thomas recovers the loose ball ... We head back the other way, as Tyrus makes the nice bounce pass to Gordon, who finishes with the layup (20-14 2:14).
Ben is keeping his team in this game right now, as he knocks down a trey (9 PTS, 4-6 FG) to get Chicago within three with 1:16 left in the quarter. Glenn Rivers M.D. calls for time, and when play resumes he subs Allan Tony and Scotty 2 Hotty into the game (Ray and Perk sit). Meanwhile, Posey is left wide open for his own three-point shot and buries it (23-17 1:02).
Pass the Duhon on the Left-Hand Side then slices down the lane for a layup, while at the other end Nocioni performs a grade-A flop job as Pierce tries to get position in paint ... The refs bite and call the offensive foul with 35.6 seconds left in the quarter (they bite alright).
Rondo takes a seat at this point, as Hugh Laurie comes into the game ... The Bulls can't capitalize, however, as Gordon airballs a three-point attempt (sweet justice) and Pierce collects the rebound. He dribbles the length of the floor and takes it right at Nocioni (daring him to try another flop); instead, Paul scores the layup PLUS draws the foul as Thomas tried to reach in and knock the ball away, so he heads to the line and this time makes the free throw (26-19 :20.5).
Chicago fails to score in the closing moments, as the lead remains seven (26-19) at the end of one.
SECOND QUARTER
House, Pierce, Pollard, Posey, and Tony Allen remain on the floor to start the second quarter ... Meanwhile, Thomas is called for the defensive three-second violation (Eddie makes the free throw), as the Celts retain possession. However, House tries to make the bounce pass inside to Pierce, but it's too hard and the ball bounces out of bounds.
That gives Chicago a chance to put a dent in Boston's lead, as Duhon takes it to the basket and jumps right into Pollard's chest to draw the foul; that puts Chris at the line (as Ray comes back into the game to replace Pierce) where he makes one-of-two free throws (27-20 11:31).
At the other end, House tries another bounce pass (this time to Tony), but again he puts too much spin on it and the ball bounces over Allen's head and out of bounds; oops ... Chicago regains possession, and Pollard commits the foul on Gray under the basket. That sends Aaron to the charity stripe with 10:54 remaining (now Glen "Macrosomia" Davis comes in for Pollard), but he misses both free throws (tee hee).
"Big Baby" hauls down the rebound and gets the ball to House, who brings it back up the floor, then passes to Posey (no bounces this time) and he knocks down the trey (30-20 10:39); there you go!
That puts Boston's lead into double digits, but Thomas tries to answer with the spin move around Posey (which causes James to fall flat on his ass) and finishes wiwth the two-handed dunk over Davis ... Nice play, but the refs slap Tyrus with a technical foul for taunting "Big Baby" after the fact (I guess staring at a person is considered "taunting" now, geez).
Ray makes the free throw, as the Celts retain possession, and Posey drives along the baseline before taking it in against Hinrich for the layup (33-22 10:05).
At the other end, Kirk misses the off-balance three-point attempt, and the ball goes up over the backboard and out of bounds (Heinsohn: "Hinrich is wallowing in bad-percentage shots!") ... Boston regains possession, but Ray dribbles the ball off his foot and out of bounds (that's the team's sixth turnover). Chicago gets another chance, as Put the Sefolosha in the Basket misses, but Thomas grabs the offensive board and gets the ball inside to Gray; he tries to score on the layup, but Davis comes up with a big rejection!
House collects the loose ball and pushes things back the other way, where he finds Tony at the top of the key. He takes it strong to the basket and draws the foul on Sefolosha, so he goes to the line and makes both free throws (35-22 9:16).
Joakim "HRG" Noah comes into the game at this point, and immediately takes it to the hoop where he's hammered by "Big Baby" (his second) ... That puts Joakim at the charity stripe, and he proceeds to miss both foul shots! Wow, Chicago is now just 1-for-7 from the line (and "Big Ben" isn't even playing).
Tony grabs the rebound, and passes upcourt to House. He tries taking it to the basket, but (with his forward momentum halted by Sefolosha) instead passes to Ray spotting up in the corner ... The defense jumps into action to try and stop him, but he simply swings the ball around to Posey, and he buries another trey (38-22 8:27)!
Now we're getting somewhere, as Tony strips Deng of the ball and goes coast to coast for the layup (40-22 7:51).
Ray then fouls Noah with 7:41 on the clock, as Garnett comes back into the game (while "Big Baby" takes a seat) ... So, Joakim is back at the line, where he makes the first free throw but misses the second; however, Sefolosha goes up over Posey and tips the loose ball in (40-25 7:39).
It's a 16-point lead with 5:21 remaining in the half, when Pierce makes his return to the floor (replacing Tony Allen) ... Meanwhile, Thabo steps out of bounds (for Chicago's fourth turnover of the quarter), as Boston regains possession and Ray knocks down the jumper (43-25 5:12).
Sefolosha then backrims the jumpshot (the Bulls have missed eight of their last ten shots!) and Posey snares the rebound. He gets the ball to Rondo, who dribbles upcourt, then tries to make the alleyoop pass inside to KG. Number Five can't make a clean catch, but is able to recover the ball ... He winds up being triple-teamed, so he kicks it out to Posey, who (in turn) shoots a bullet pass inside to Rajon. He's covered by Noah, so he hands it off to Garnett, who draws the foul on Hinrich.
Nice ball movement by the C's, which results in two free throws by Kevin to make it a 20-point lead (45-25 4:43). At the other end, Deng completely loses sight of Hinrich as he tries to give him the ball ... Instead, he winds up passing the ball to one of his teammates on the bench (ha HA!). That's another turnover for the Bulls, as Boston regains possession and Ray makes the nice pass inside to Garnett who easily scores over Noah (47-25 4:17).
Two free throws from Thomas (off what looked like a clean block by Pierce) gets Chicago back within twenty, then Rondo fakes a behind-the-back pass to Posey (which draws a few "oohs" from the crowd) before taking it to the rim ... However, Tyrus doesn't fall for it, and winds up blocking Rajon's shot; luckily, Rondo is able to recover the loose ball, and goes in for another shot but comes up short.
The Celtics aren't done yet, though, as KG grabs the offensive board ... but ends up getting poked in the eye by Gordon (ouch), so he loses control of the ball and Posey is called for the foul trying to keep Ben from getting to it.
Kevin appears to be alright, as he remains in the game while Gordon steps to the line (Boston is over the limit) and makes both free throws (47-29 3:33).
At the other end, Garnett (to prove there are no lingering ill effects) backs down Noah before giving the pumpfake to draw the foul; his plan works, so KG steps to the line and makes two more (49-29 3:17).
Deng scores, then Garnett misses the fallaway "jay" over Thomas, but Perk grabs the offensive board surrounded by three Chicago players (nice) and is fouled from behind by Joakim while scoring the layup! So, Kendrick takes his place at the charity stripe, and makes the free throw to complete the three-point play (52-31 2:43).
Is it too early to call the blowout? I smell it coming a mile away ... However, the Bulls do end the quarter on a 10-4 run (capped by Duhon's three-pointer), yet it's still a 15-point advantage (56-41) at the half.
The Celts can attribute their solid first-half numbers to three main factors:
- a 30-13 advantage on the boards (thanks to no Ben Wallace clogging up the paint)
- being aggressive and taking the ball to the basket, which is evident in their 23 free-throw attempts (making 18) ... by contrast, Chicago is only 7-for-15 from the line
- spreading out the scoring, as the C's have three players in double figures: Garnett (12 PTS, 3-6 FG, 6-6 FT), Posey (11 PTS, 3 REB), and Perkins (10 PTS, 3-3 FG)
That dry spell that affected the Celts at the end of the second quarter continues into the third (KG picks up two quick fouls in the first minute of the quarter), however a basket from Perkins - who still hasn't missed - with 10:41 remaining gives Boston the 16-point lead. Garnett then strips Gray of the ball (nice) and passes upcourt to Rondo, who finds Pierce in the corner; he fakes the shot but instead passes inside to Kevin (who's made his way up the floor) where he runs into a triple-team. Rather than forcing up a shot, he makes the over-the-shoulder pass to a wide-open Rajon for the layup attempt that's goaltended by Gray (60-42 10:13).
Deng then bricks the jumpshot (he's 3-for-8 from the field, while Chicago has taken just two field-goal attempts and missed both of them), and the loose rebound goes off Hinrich out of bounds. Boston regains possession, as Luol plays some tight defense on Pierce, forcing him to kick the ball out to Allen with only three seconds on the shot clock. He's covered by Hinrich, and is at least four feet behind the three-point line, but has to shoot it ... and knocks it down (63-42 9:31)!
If that's not a sign that the Bulls have no chance tonight, then I don't know what is ... Hinrich scores off the tough fadeaway jumper over the outstretched hand of Perk, then Kendrick tries to answer with the layup, but the shot rims out (whoopsie) and Deng grabs the rebound. He passes to Hinrich, who takes it back the other way and finds Gordon for the three-pointer (63-47 8:31).
At the other end, Pierce tries to get the ball inside to KG, but he mishandles the pass and loses it out of bounds (Boston's 12th turnover); Chicago regains possession, however Hinrich tries to pass the ball to Gray and Kevin pokes it away from behind!
Rondo collects the loose ball, and zooms upcourt for the 2-on-2 fast break; he tries to make the bounce pass to Ray, but he winds up dribbling the ball off his sneaker (!) and Gordon is able to pick it up. We head back the other way, as Ben passes to Hinrich, and he in turn tries to give the ball right back ... This time, Garnett steps in for the steal (Chicago's ninth turnover) and makes a fullcourt pass to Allen, who finds Pierce wide open for another trey (66-47 7:43).
Kinda sloppy here, but the Celts still have that big lead (which is the important thing). After a Bulls timeout, Gordon drives to the basket and the refs whistle Pierce for the foul; it's funny, you can clearly hear Paul say "I got this!" as he switches over to cover Ben, then the whistle blows and you can hear him complaining "Where? Where? Where?" in a disturbingly high-pitched voice ... Well, I thought it was funny, but in any event Ben heads to the line and makes both free throws (66-49 7:01).
On the next possession, Perkins is called for the foul trying to battle Smith for position underneath the basket (that's Boston's fifth offensive foul of the game!), which gives Chicago another chance to make some kind of dent in this lead ... However, Deng misses the pullup jumpshot, and Ray grabs the rebound. He takes it upcourt himself, then drives down the lane (drawing in the defense) but kicks it out to Pierce for one more three-ball (69-49 6:32); the C's are now 7-of-14 from behind the arc!
The Bulls, meanwhile, are getting frustrated, as Nocioni picks up the technical foul for arguing with the refs. Pierce makes the free throw (Boston is now 21-of-26 from the line) to give his team the 21-point advantage with 4:37 on the clock ... The margin is still at 21 when Gordon fails to connect on the three-point attempt, but Gray basically shucks Pollard out of bounds to get the offensive board (no call) and passes inside to Andres; he goes up for the shot, and the officials decide that this is worthy enough for a foul call, and blow the whistle on "Big Baby".
That was a pretty bad non-call, as Eddie House (sitting on the bench) actually picks up a technical for voicing his displeasure! So, the Celts give the point back as Gordon makes the free throw, but Nocioni also gets a turn at the line and adds two more (79-61 2:33).
Ray then misses the three-point attempt, but "Big Baby" takes a tumble trying to get the offensive board, and the refs call the foul on Gordon ... Now, while it's true that Ben did have a hand in Davis' back, I must admit that was a bit of an acting job to draw the whistle (Gorman: "Glen is very good at emphasizing things like that, it looked like he was doing angels in the snow!"). Anyway, it worked, so "Big Baby" heads to the line for two foul shots of his own (81-61 2:15).
Thomas then misses the shot, as Rondo grabs the rebound (his seventh!) and heads up the floor; he gives the ball to Pierce, who finds Posey standing behind the three-point line. He fakes taking the shot, but instead gets the ball to Rondo, and he makes the crosscourt pass to Paul for another trey (84-61 1:40) ... That's 22 points for Pierce (15 in the third), and he has not missed from beyond the arc in the quarter (4-4 3PTers)!
Two free throws by Ray makes it a 25-point lead with 1:14 remaining, as it's about time for Chicago to throw in the towel, I'm thinking ... We head to the fourth with the Celts up 87 to 67.
FOUTH QUARTER
Posey, Davis, House, and the two Allens are on the floor to start the quarter ... Meanwhile, Tony strips Thomas of the ball, as Eddie picks it up to start the fast break. He passes to a wide-open T-Allen, who throws down the impressive two-handed slam (89-67 11:17); he actually might have been able to put a little more force behind that dunk, but seeing him elevate like that at all is definitely a good sign!
Speaking of good stuff, "Big Baby" comes up with a big block on the shot by Noah with eight minutes remaining in the game, and House is again able to recover the loose ball. He pushes it up the floor, then finds Ray spotting up in the corner for the three-pointer (98-73 7:44)!
Okay, it's back to a 25-point advantage, so I'm gonna call this one ... Celts eventually prevail by the score of 107 to 82. Goodnight, everybody!
FINAL SCORE: Boston 107, Chicago 82
GAME RATING:
18
KILLER
BOSTON TOP PERFORMERS:
- Pierce: 27 MIN, 22 PTS (6-11 FG, 4-6 3PTers), 7 REB, 3 AST
- R. Allen: 37 MIN, 18 PTS (6-14 FG, 3-7 3PTers), 4 AST, 3 REB
- Garnett: 25 MIN, 12 PTS (3-6 FG, 6-6 FT), 7 REB, 5 AST, 4 STL
- Gordon: 31 MIN, 19 PTS (5-12 FG), 2 STL
- Gray: 28 MIN, 14 PTS (6-11 FG), 6 REB (4 OFF), 2 AST
- Duhon: 29 MIN, 10 PTS (3-7 FG), 4 AST
POST-GAME NOTES:
- Another early start to the game, as ESPN had this one on their schedule as well.
- The Bulls were limited to just 36 percent shooting (27-76 FG). As for the Celtics, they shot 44 percent (31-70 FG), including 12-for-26 from three-point range.
- The bench redeemed themselves after their collective five-point "effort" against the Pistons; Boston got 36 points from their non-starters, including double digits from Tony Allen (23 MIN, 12 PTS, 4-9 FG, 5 REB) and Posey (21 MIN, 11 PTS, 4-7 FG).
- In fact, the C's had six of their players score in double figures ... not bad.
- This is Boston's ninth victory by twenty or more points.
- Perkins was tonight's Tommy Award winner.
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