Heading into tonight’s game at the Garden, Boston had not lost at home to the Kings since 2007. At many points during this wild and at times frustrating game, it definitely looked like that streak was in jeopardy. But despite sputtering through most of tonight’s game, Al Horford’s historic performance (more on that later) gets the green a 97-92 win.
The Celtics, lead by Al Horford, came out of the gates smoking hot. Horford scored 12 points in his first 8 minutes and Boston was up 26-14 with just under 4 minutes to go in the quarter. The Celts were tossing up threes, but they were actually going in. Enter the second unit and some sloppy play. A bad Zeller turnover, Omri Casspi trey and DeMarcus Cousins drive helped the Kings go on a 12-0 run to end the 1st. It was 29-29 after 1Q. The Kings’ bench outscored Boston’s 11-0 in the quarter.
The Kings kept the momentum through much of the second quarter. Veteran and the-guy-you-love-to-hate Matt Barnes tore it up. Barnes racked up numbers of 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals & 6 points in 10 minutes. Boston going 1 of 11 with 4 turnovers on 15 possessions starting near the end of the 1st just compounded things. The Celts found themselves up 43-40 after Al Horford came back in and drilled a jumper with 4:25 left in the half. Neither team could connect on much, and the Celts seemed ok with just being in a close game at this point. Nothing new, just another lackluster quarter for Boston. C’s were lucky to be up 47-46 at the half. After starting off hot from downtown, Boston fell in love with the longball again. C’s took a total of 2 FT’s in the half and were outscored 24-14 in the paint. The Kings bench, with guys like Ty Lawson & Barnes leading the way, outscored Boston’s 24-6.
In the third quarter Sacramento really started to ride DeMarcus Cousins. The big man had 10 of the Kings’ 26 points. Meanwhile, Boston continued to rely on the three to no avail. The Celts were 1 of 7 from deep, but thankfully Isaiah Thomas stayed aggressive. IT turned on the jets, getting to the line often and trying desperately to inject some life into his team. Avery Bradley played some great defense and Boston went into the final quarter down 72-69. Up to this point, this frenetic game had 22 lead changes and 10 ties. Not what you’d like to see from the Celtics at home against the Kings.
Just when you thought Boston was about to wilt, they finally came to life in the fourth. The catalysts? One Terry Rozier and Al Horford. Rozier came into the game and made play after play-steals, fastbreak buckets and his energy brought the TD Garden crowd to life. Horford had another big block, and his turnaround jumper with 7:54 left tied the game at 76. The Celts would not relinquish the lead again (despite SacTown making it interesting late) and Horford finished with a season-high 26 points. Al was equally impressive on the defensive end, with 6 blocks. Isaiah Thomas had a poor shooting night, scoring 20 points on 6 of 21, but his aggressive mindset in the 3rd & 4th quarters was crucial to Boston holding on for the win.
The Green:
- According to CSNNE, Horford became the first Celtic to ever record 5 blocks and 4 made threes in a game. Al’s final line: 26 pts, 8 rebs, 6 blks, 3 asts & 2 stls.
- Terry Rozier really sparked his squad in the fourth. When it looked like the Kings were mounting another run, Rozier came in & had 3 rebounds, 2 assists & 2 steals in 9 minutes. He also pushed the tempo at a much needed juncture.
- Avery Bradley had 15 points and 9 rebounds-another great game on the boards. Jae Crowder quietly had 16 points and shot 50% from the field & 60% from three. Jonas Jerebko grabbed himself 9 rebounds in 15 mins.
The Gross:
- C’s bench was outscored 33-12
The Greenlights:
https://vine.co/v/5ULvz2tIHwx
https://vine.co/v/5ULbr0Qa3Lb
https://vine.co/v/5U3nuWq5gdP
https://vine.co/v/5U3lv0DYQpi
The Grid:
- Rebounds: SAC 51 BOS 44
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