Okay, so the Celts have this home-court thing pretty much down pat ...

... now if we can just transfer that intensity and defensive focus over to the state of Georgia (sweet Georgia) then we might actually have a shot at moving on to the next round! Hey, I know it's asking a lot for a 66-win club to come out victorious against a number eight seed that couldn't even eke out a .500 record in the regular season, but I think we can pull it off, right guys?

Seriously, it's been proven any number of times that the Celtics are at least twenty points better than the Hawks; last night's 110-85 outcome (sports.yahoo.com) was just the latest example ... Now, with a chance to finish off the series Friday night, this Celtics team simply has to come out and prove to all of the (suddenly voluminous and stentorian) naysayers that they have the mental toughness necessary for the postseason and will not get rattled on an opposing team's home floor; after all, I'm still confident that the Celts will advance, but they haven't exactly done themselves any favors by appearing "spooked" when put up against an inferior opponent's boisterous crowd (I'm sure the Pistons are just licking their chops at the prospects of getting the C's within the friendly confines of the Palace at Auburn Hills).

Look, you can blame dirty plays and the shot clocks and poor officiating all you want, but the fact remains that a young and inexperienced ballclub stifled the Celts twice in the playoffs already; there's no way we can erase that from the record books now. However, they took care of business at the Garden last night and have now put themselves in perfect position to at least place those forgettable performances behind them and get back on track ... Time to close this one out, boys; on Friday we leave the Hawks in our rear-view mirrors on the Drive to 17 (TM)!