When Will Things Finally Start Going the Celtics' Way Again?

I realize that with 17 NBA championships comes a lifetime of haters and jealousy across the country (and world) so I understand that nobody outside of their fanbase will ever feel bad for the Celtics when they are stuck in neutral for years like this. Boston (2-3 overall, 2-1 home) snapped a three-game losing streak with a 101-98 win tonight at TD Garden vs. Indiana (1-5 overall, 0-3 away). Unfortunately, what this victory will be remembered for most is rookie Marcus Smart's leaving the court on a stretcher due to a brutal ankle injury in the fourth quarter.

Seeing anyone get injured is depressing enough but Smart has showed plenty of potential in the first five games of this season. His offensive game is still a work in progress but he's already an excellent defender and has a high basketball IQ. All we can hope is that it's not as bad as it looked and he's not out for too long. Credit to the Celts for pushing through that after seeing him go down. They might not be very good (yet?) but you can tell it's a tight-knit group.

Jared Sullinger (17 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists) led five Celtics in double figures: Jeff Green had 15 points and seven rebounds, Kelly Olynyk scored 12 points with five rebounds, Avery Bradley added 11 points and Brandon Bass notched 10 points off the bench.

With Paul George, George Hill and David West all out, there aren't many teams in the NBA more decimated by injuries than the Pacers. Roy Hibbert had a game-high 22 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks but it wasn't enough. Former Knick Chris Copeland scored 17 points with six rebounds, Donald Sloan put up 15 points, Solomon Hill posted 12 points and Luis Scola supplied 11 points and eight rebounds. Former Sixer Lavoy Allen contributed 12 points and seven rebounds off the bench.

Boston led 30-26 after the first quarter and 55-52 at halftime. Indiana outscored Boston 23-18 in the third quarter to take a 75-73 lead into the final frame but the C's rallied for the much-needed win. The Celts hit four more 3-pointers (9-5), had eight more assists (26-18), three times as many steals (6-2) and six more fast break points (8-2). That allowed them to survive Indiana's dominance inside: 56-34 points in the paint.

Back-to-back games in the NBA are always tough but the Celtics really have their work cut out for them tomorrow night (8, CSN) as they visit the Bulls (5-1 overall, 1st in Central Division). Derrick Rose didn't play in Friday's 118-115 win over Philadelphia as he rests his ankles. Talk about a guy that could use a healthy season, geez. Boston head coach Brad Stevens said that Smart wouldn't make the trip to Chicago (duh) as they await the MRI results in the morning. Think good thoughts Celtics fans!

UPDATE 11/8: The Celtics announced that Smart is only expected to miss two or three weeks which is great news. Also, Rondo missed tonight's game in Chicago because he was getting the screw(s) out of his hand. He's expected back on Wednesday vs. Oklahoma City.

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Bass's Career Night Carries Celtics To One Game Away From Eastern Conference Finals

If you asked me to pick the Celtic that would basically save their season in the playoffs, the odds are that Brandon Bass would never come up in my first four choices.

However, shame on me since Bass was the player that woke Boston up after a quiet first half tonight against the Sixers. He scored a career-high 27 points, including 18 in the decisive third quarter, as the C's beat the Sixers 101-85 in the pivotal Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals at TD Garden.

Bass is the only player from either team to score in double-figures every game so far in this series but nobody could have seen this explosion coming. He even had three dunks in the third quarter, something he very rarely does.

The Big 3 improved to 8-0 in Game 5s when Boston has been tied 2-2 heading into it and they also moved to 5-1 this postseason on their home court. Most importantly, they erased the bitter taste of Game 4's choke and moved one win away from another trip in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Philadelphia controlled play for the first two quarters as they led 27-23 after one and 50-47 at halftime. Honestly, the Celts were lucky to only be down by three points since the 76ers were making seemingly every shot and Boston wasn't playing with any sense of urgency. Philly was up by six early in the third quarter before the Celtics woke up with a 14-2 run. They closed the frame on a 10-2 spurt as Bass outscored the Sixers by himself (18-16).

There would be no epic collapse by the C's tonight as they wrapped it up with a strong fourth (26-19) thanks to some rock solid defense. It also helped that Boston lived at the free throw line (26 for 33) compared to Philadelphia (10 for 16), a typical NBA byproduct of being in front of the home fans. The Sixers unraveled in the second half as it felt like they turned it over on nearly every possession. Philly's 15 turnovers led to 18 points for Boston.

Bass also had six rebounds while Kevin Garnett (20 points, 6 rebounds), Rajon Rondo (13 points, 14 assists) and Paul Pierce (16 points) all played their parts. Greg Stiemsma made the most of his minutes with 10 points and three blocks off the bench. Avery Bradley missed the game due to his shoulder injuries (plural) so Ray Allen started for him but only had five points in 33 minutes. If Bradley is out longer, the C's have to find a way to get Allen more involved in the offense.

Elton Brand had by far his best game of the series with a team-high 19 points. He picked a bad time to play like that since most of his teammates were no-shows. Lavoy Allen was the next highest scorer with 12 points off the bench. If Doug Collins is set on Brand in the starting lineup (which was rewarded tonight), maybe he should consider starting Allen over Spencer Hawes (10 points) who has been awful. Evan Turner had 11 points and 10 rebounds while Jrue Holiday scored 10 points with seven assists. Andre Iguodala was held to eight points in the loss.

We all know how much the Celtics like to make things difficult on themselves so I'm expecting them to play worse in Game 6 on Wednesday (8 p.m., TNT) in Philadelphia. Plus, the Sixers will get the benefit of the calls. Still, it would behoove the C's to wrap it up since the Western Conference Finals are set (Spurs vs. Thunder) and they need to close out Philly. No reason to give them any hope and prolong this series even further when it should already be over.

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Unlike Game 1, Celtics Can't Close Out Sixers, Philly Wins Game 2 82-81

We can all agree that making it a habit of partaking in one-point playoff games is not a recipe for success in the long run.

The Boston Celtics were lucky enough to win Game 1 (92-91) of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Saturday night but the Philadelphia 76ers got what they came for-the split-as they took Game 2 82-81 this evening at TD Garden.

The truth of the matter is that Boston could easily be up 2-0 in this series or also down 0-2 so it is fair that both teams captured one game since they've been virtually even through the first two contests.

Let's be honest as well that this wasn't your garden variety one-point win, it was basically a four or five-point win since Ray Allen (17 points) hit a 3-pointer with three seconds left and Kevin Garnett (15 points, 12 rebounds) hit a 3-pointer as time expired. Give Philly credit as Evan Turner (10 points, 6 rebounds), Lou Williams (8 points, 7 rebounds) and Jodie Meeks all made a pair of free throws with 12 seconds or less remaining in regulation. For that alone, Philly already proved to be superior to the Hawks.

Boston lost Game 2 in the second and third quarters where they combined for 24 points (13 in the second, 11 in the third). Philadelphia had 36 in that time frame (15 in the second, 21 in the third) which by comparison looks like a Harlem Globetrotters type output. It's astonishing that the C's made it that close, particularly when they hit seven free throws for the entire game and turned the ball over 19 times. Did I mention that the Sixers grabbed 11 more rebounds (47-36)? Weirdest and ugliest Celtics playoff game in a long time.

Jrue Holiday led Philadelphia with a game-high 18 points. Andre Iguodala had 13 points, seven assists and six rebounds while Spencer Hawes notched eight points and 10 rebounds plus Lavoy Allen scored 10 points with eight rebounds off the bench.

Brandon Bass scored 12 points but Rajon Rondo (8 points, 13 assists, 7 rebounds) had a quiet night. The only real positive development offensively for the Celts is that Mickael Pietrus (8 points) woke up from his playoffs-long no-show to hit a pair of huge 3-pointers. Avery Bradley also scored eight points in only 20 minutes as his shoulder popped out again so his time on the court was limited.

One thing we can always count on with the C's is that they'll never make it easy on themselves or their fans. This loss ensured that there will be a Game 5 next Monday in Boston. First things first, the series shifts to Philadelphia for Games 3 & 4. Game 3 is Wednesday night (7:00 p.m., TNT) and I have a feeling that the Celtics will have more energy and better offensive execution. At least that is my hope since they really need to win that game and not fall behind 2-1.

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Celtics Pull Out Improbable Game 1 Win Over Sixers In Eastern Conference Semifinals

For three quarters last night, the Celtics looked and played like an old, worn out team. Luckily for them, there are still four quarters in NBA games as they used a 23-7 run in the fourth to steal a 92-91 win against the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals at TD Garden.

Kevin Garnett (29 points, 11 rebounds) eclipsed his season-high in points, which he set in Game 6 against the Hawks and Rajon Rondo (13 points, 17 assists, 12 rebounds, 4 steals) notched his eighth career postseason triple-double. Paul Pierce had another quiet game (I guess the knee is really bothering him) with 14 points, six rebounds and six assists. Brandon Bass scored 10 points, Avery Bradley had eight points while Ray Allen notched 12 points off the bench.

Andre Iguodala led the Sixers with 19 points, six rebounds and six assists. Evan Turner had 16 points, 10 rebounds and four steals, Spencer Hawes put up 15 points and eight rebounds while Lavoy Allen (12 points) and Lou Williams (9 points) made things happen off the bench.

Philly jumped out to a 28-18 lead after the first quarter so from then on, Boston was trying to catch up. After going down by as much as 13 (45-32) in the second quarter, the Celts rallied to make it a manageable 5-point deficit (47-42) at halftime. The C's actually outscored the Sixers in each of the last three quarters, including 25-24 in the third and 25-20 in the fourth.

This became exactly the type of grimy, ugly contest that the Celtics excel in the most. The Sixers kept taking and missing jump shots in the fourth and the combination of Rondo penetrating and KG making plays (jumpers, a great And-1) were enough to get it done. Also, Pierce hit a clutch mid-range jumper.

It was only Game 1 but picking up this victory was vital since Boston didn't want to lose its home-court advantage already. It shouldn't come down to it but this ensured that if they keep winning all their games at the Garden, they'll advance to the Eastern Conference finals.

I've never seen what happened in this one: both the Celtics & Sixers had the exact same amount of shots taken (82) and hit (36) from the floor. Philly made three more 3-pointers (5-2), two more steals (9-7) and one more block (8-7). The Celtics hit four more free throws (18-14), grabbed four more rebounds (45-41) and handed out nine more assists (28-19).

Game 2 is tomorrow night (7 p.m., TNT) at the Garden, Boston could really do themselves a big favor by winning that one too.

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