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Boston Blows Big Lead to Even Series with Philly

The Celtics blew a big lead in the second half to fall short of the 76ers on Friday. The loss moves the series to a 2-2 tie in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The game was played in Philadelphia, and it was a rowdy home crowd that willed their team back into the game after the 6ers fell behind early. The series is now anybodies to win while it has been a much more competitive series than most this playoff season.

Paul Pierce, who continues to be the outright leader of the Celtics, led the team in scoring with 24 points. Garnett and Rondo both had big games too, as Garnett led in rebounds with 11 and Rondo led all in assist with 15. In the end it was not enough as they blew a 46-31 halftime lead and gave up 61 points in the second half. The team must play a full four-quarter game against Philly if they hope to win this series.

The 76ers leader was Iguodala who came on particularly strong in the second half. Allen contributed 10 rebounds to the win while Williams racked up 8 assists. The 76ers scored under 20 points in both quarters of the first half before putting up 28 points in the third and a whopping 33 in the fourth. This is what caused the Celtics demise and tied everything up in the series. Game 5 of the series will be anyone’s game, and will be played on Sunday. Given how the series has played out so far, it should be a good one.

Celtics Regain Lead in Series

The Celtics knocked off the 76ers at home on Wednesday to take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the NBA playoffs. The Celtics returned the favor Wednesday by beating the 76ers on their court two days after the 6ers did just that to the Celtics. This win, however, was a lot stronger and seemed to show just how things may have gone in the veteran Celtics locker room after Their Monday loss in Boston. It certainly seemed like they were showing their unity with the 107-91 final.

Garnett really came through in game 3 for the Celtics as he was a menace on both ends of the floor. Offensively, he scored 27 points to lead the team and had the tenacity of a Garnett seen years prior. He also grabbed 13 rebounds in the contest, which led all players. Rondo contributed to the victory by stacking up 14 assists in the game. The team scored near 30 points every quarter and, more importantly, managed to win on the road, which is something they had struggled doing much of the year. Overall they were just 15-18 in away games the entire season.

The 76ers fell due, in large part, to horrific efforts just before and after the half. The team scored 33 to start the game and had a 5-point lead following the first quarter. They then scored just 16 in the second and 17 in the third before snapping out of it and scoring 25 in the fourth and final quarter. The 33 points scored between the second and third quarters was just too devastating and cost them the game.

Celtics Fall While Series Evens

The Celtics fell in a nail-biter on Monday against the 76ers. The game was game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals and the Celtics had a 1-0 lead in the series going into Monday’s contest. The Game was in Boston and a win for the Celtics would have given them a significant advantage in the series. Instead, the 76ers were able to get out of Boston with a win, which will make the series more difficult for Boston as they will now have to travel to Philadelphia on Wednesday.

The Celtics got good production from their veteran stars who led the team in all the major statistical categories. Allen led in scoring with 17 points. Garnett grabbed 12 rebounds and Rondo had 13 assists. The team still looks poised to continue through this series and will if they can continue to get production from their main players. The Celtics really lost the game between the second and third quarters when they scored just 24 points collectively. They scored 57 points between the other 2 quarters of the contest, which would have been more than enough to win.

The 76ers were able to stay more consistent throughout to get the victory. After a slow 15-point start in the first quarter, they were able to score 20 points or more in the remaining quarters. Holiday led the team in scoring with 18. Hawes contributed 10 rebounds to the victory while Iguodala led the team in assist with 7. The team now travels back home where they will hope to have more success while the Celtics are now a bit on the ropes.

Bulls Extend Series

The Bulls won 77-69 on Tuesday in Chicago in game 5 of the Eastern Conference first round against the 76ers. The team would have been knocked out of the playoff race if they lost, and were able to pull together in an impressive defensive performance. Chicago has been a hard place for any visiting teams to play all season, with just 7 road teams leaving the Chicago arena with wins this entire season. Even without Rose, who was lost in game one of the series, and Noah the team still rose to the occasion and force a game 6.

Deng led the bulls, and all scorers in the contest, with 24 points. Boozer contributed 13 rebounds to the team win as well, while Watson added a team-leading 7 assists. The Bulls outscored the 76ers in the initial 2 quarters by the margin of 35-26. Needless to say, this was some very painful basketball to watch. The 9-point lead came in handy for the Bulls though and led to their victory. This was despite having scored just 22 points in their most productive quarter. The team scored under 20 points in 2 of the games quarters.

Holiday led the 76ers with 16 points and also led the team in assist with 4. Hawes grabbed 14 rebounds for the 76ers as well, but all was in a losing effort. The 76ers are still up 3 games to 2 in the series, but the Bulls will not be going down without a fight. Time will tell if they have lost too much talent to still compete or if they have just enough to get by.

Celtics Fail to Close Series in ATL

The Celtics were unable to close out their Eastern Conference first round series with Atlanta on Tuesday. The team just fell short as they lost 87-86 in Atlanta. The series is now 3 games to 2 in favor of the Celtics. The veteran team would have loved to close the series out to give them more time to rest before the next series is set to begin. They now find themselves focusing on game 6 of the series, which would put the team in a win or go home situation if the lose. They hope to win that game and move on one step further in the playoffs.

The Celtics had 2 players score 16 points, which was the team high on the day. Shooting was hard to come by from both teams in the contest. Boston never even scored over 25 points in any of the game’s quarters. Rondo contributed his usual amount of assist as he dished 12 passes that ended up getting into the bucket. The Celtics started of the contest with a 6-point lead after the first quarter. The Hawks tied the game up going into the half, however, before coming out just a bit hotter then the Celtics in the second half to earn the win.

Horford led the way for the Hawks with 19 points scored. Smith led the team in rebounds, as he grabbed an amazing 16 boards. He also led the team in assist with 6. The Hawks were able to get over 25 points scored in both the 2^nd and third quarter. This got them back into the game and put them up 2 points going into the fourth quarter. From there they held on to get the win and force a game 6.

Veteran Celtics Step Closer to 2nd Round

The Celtics won 101-79 against the Hawks in Boston on Sunday. The game puts the Celtics up 3-1 in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Celtics were able to easily win and scored at will against the weaker Hawks team. Despite their age, the Celtics are showing that experience is really what their age defines. They are looking just as good as any NBA team right now, and who knows how far they can go. On Tuesday, they will look to wrap up the series.

Pierce, who has been the constant for the Celtics all season, led the team in scoring with 24 points. Rondo had a double-double in the contest, which included 16 assist. The Celtics offense was hot throughout and scored over 30 points on two of the game’s quarters. The team scored 64 points in the first half compared to just 41 scored by the Hawks. It was clear at halftime that the game was done, but the Celtics came out in the third to outscore the Hawks yet again. It was not until the fourth quarter, when the Celtics eased up and ran the clock out, that the Hawks were able to outscore them.

The Hawks’ Smith led all major statistical categories for Atlanta. Smith led the team in scoring with just 15 points. He also added 13 rebounds and contributed 5 assists in the losing effort. The Hawks have simply been outmatched all series despite their better regular season record and younger players. It just goes to show that youth does not win championships.

Paul Pierce Tebowing

Paul Pierce “Tebows” after free throw

Paul Pierce has been dubbed “The Truth” and after a very great game against the Atlanta Hawks that had the Celtics defeat the Hawks 87-80, he did a “Tebow.” I guess this is some kind of tribute to the closer and come-back king that Tim Tebow is.

Pierce may have gotten some criticism from people who aren’t that wild about Tebow and his game, but I feel like it was just a way for Pierce to thank God for a great performance and he said so himself after the game. Pierce has come under some flak with people stating that he has changed since he won a title and has not been as friendly.

Some feel that a player of the caliber of Paul Pierce should not be copying Tim Tebow, but then again Tebow is all the rage in the US of A.

The Celtics are having a bit of a struggle against the Hawks and a team that was once so dominant has aged considerably and is struggling to get past the first round of the playoffs. As for Paul Pierce, I agree with the experts that he is a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

But as for another ring. At age 34, I don’t know if he and the Celtics with their current problems and with Rondo running the point can win another title. Ray Allen did say that they had met Michael Jordan after their triumph in 2008 and Hisairness had talked about how they had gotten lucky. Another title is surely very important for the Celtics and Paul Pierce to solidify their place in history.

Celtics Win Despite Rondos Suspension

The Celtics won 87-80 against the Hawks on Tuesday in Atlanta. The win for Boston ties the series up 1-1 in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Celtics were able to get the victory despite being without their star Rondo who missed the game due to suspension for bumping into a referee in game one of the series. This was due to what Rondo believes was a bad call by the referee in the game and came after Rondo was already upset by some calls by the Referee earlier in the contest.

Pierce led the way for the Celtics with 36 points and added 14 rebounds to record a double-double. Pierce has been the heart and soul of the team throughout the season and has played as well, if not better, then previous Celtic playoff performances. Garnett contributed to the victory by leading the team in assist with 5. The Celtics fell behind and were outscored in every quarter going into the fourth. They entered the fourth down by 5, but outscored the Hawks 26-14 to get the win.

Johnson led the way for the Hawks with 22 points in the losing effort. Smith added 12 big rebounds for Atlanta, but it was not enough. In the end, the 14-point performance in the fourth cost the team the victory and gave the Celtics new life. The teams seem to be very evenly matched thus far, and the series should be a very exciting one for NBA fans to watch.

Rajon Rondo one-game suspension

Everyone is well aware of Rondo’s anger management issues. He was rumored to have left a team meeting in a storm after shoving the projector. Additionally, Rondo had already been suspended for two regular season games earlier this season for throwing a ball at a referee.

As for my views on this whole issue, I actually feel it was a bit unfair. Again, this may be entirely my own opinion. But when you look at it, there was the intensity of the moment and added to the fact that he was getting fouled and not having the calls go his way. There has been some really really bad officiating this year and I feel that Rajon Rondo has some right in reacting the way he did.

The NBA players have actually had to deal with quite a bit over the last year. What with the truncated season as a result of the lockout and now having to deal with the folly of all the missed calls and other things that can help decide a game, I can see how Rondo might have gotten frustrated. But of course, I totally agree from the rulebook point of view that what Rondo did deserves the one-game suspension that he got.

When you look at someone like Rajon Rondo, people would say he has a pretty tricky ego. But I wouldn’t really call it that. He is just someone who doesn’t like be messed with and it was evident from how he handled the whole Big Three coming together situation. Even as great as Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen were, Rondo also felt that he deserved to be fairly treated even with these three kings on the team.

After all, he had made a name for himself at the University of Kentucky and was a round-one pick in the 2006 NBA draft.

Celtics Fall to Hawks

The Celtics fell 97-92 to the Hawks on Friday in Atlanta. The team had troubles stopping the Hawks Johnson who had a big game. The Celtics still look to be in good shape for a playoff position but would like to play as tough as possible down the stretch. Their road record also drops to 15-18 with the latest loss. The team had some players step up big for them, but in the end did not have enough to get it done. As the season winds down quickly, the team must stay focused on each day game to game and not look to the future at this point.

Bradley has a huge game for the Celtics as he put in 28 points in the contest for Boston. Daniels also tried to contribute to the win by collecting 8 rebounds. The team was outscored in three of the games four quarters, which began in the first as they fell behind 34-27. After this they could never recover and this was the only time they scored more than 25 points. At this point in time it is hard to say who the Celtics will face in the playoffs, but they must focus on one game at a time to have any success.

Johnson ended up with 30 points to lead the Hawks and all scorers in Friday’s contest against Boston. Johnson also added 6 assists to lead the team. Smith contributed 12 rebounds to the Hawks which helped get the win for Atlanta. The team scored 34 points to start the game and never looked back as they were able to win with relative ease. The Hawks are now 38-25 on the season while their home record moves to 21-9.

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