Tip: 8PM Court: Toyota Center Watch it: CSN Hear it: WEEI
Referees: Tom Washington, David Jones and Haywoode Workman
Get your tickets here: Boston Celtics Tickets
The Matchup
 |
 |
| Record: 12-9 | Record: 10-11 |
| On road: 4-5 | At home: 8-5 |
| Streak: Won 2 | Streak: Won 1 |
| Leaders | Leaders |
| Buckets: Pierce (19.9 ppg) | Buckets: James Harden (25.00 ppg) |
| Boards: Garnett (7.1 rpg) | Boards: Omir Asik (11.6 rpg) |
| Dimes: Rondo (12.9 apg) | Dimes: Jeremy Lin (6.1 apg) |
| For the Stat Geeks: | For the Stat Geeks: |
| Offensive Rating: 103.9 (15th NBA) | Offensive Rating: 106.3 (11th NBA) |
| Defensive Rating: 103.1 (9th NBA) | Defensive Rating: 106.9 (22nd NBA) |
| Pace: 92.3 (12th NBA) | Pace: 96.6 (1st NBA) |
Last time
The Celtics beat the Rockets, 97-92, back in March. According to my recap, they resembled the Walking Dead and the game was the ugliest overtime thriller imaginable.
This time
Get it to: Rajon Rondo
Houston is allowing a league worst 104 ppg. Opposing teams shoot 46% and 38% from three. Give the keys to Rajon Rondo and get the hell out of the way.
Gotta stop: James Harden
Harden remains the Rockets best offensive player and the focal point of the league’s 3rd highest scoring offense. He’s averaging 15 more ppg than any other Houston starter. Harden’s shooting percentage is back to a respectable level (45%) after plummeting (41%) in November. This is a real tough match-up for Jason Terry. Expect the Celtics to continue trapping defensively.
The Wild Card: Omir Asik
The 7-footer is averaging a double-double and nearly 4 offensive rebounds per game. I can see him killing the Celtics. He’s also a fantastic pick-and-roll defender. How the Celtics bigs handle him – on both ends of the court – could determine this game.
How we see it goin’ down
This game could get nuts. Houston isn’t really interested in playing defense and they love to push the pace. While I’m deathly afraid of the Celtics committing 22 turnovers, I like their chances – on the break on on the perimeter.
I’m also not worried about heavy legs. Doc can go deep into the bench for this one. Guys like Courtney Lee, Leandro Barbosa and Chris Wilcox should thrive in a fast paced game.
Celtics 107
Rockets 94
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