One of Those Nights: Rockets 119, Celtics 114 (OT)

Posted by Brian Robb on Apr 2, 2010 721414 commentshttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F2010%2F04%2F02%2Fone-of-those-nights-rockets-119-celtics-114-ot%2FOne+of+Those+Nights%3A+Rockets+119%2C+Celtics+114+%28OT%292010-04-03+03%3A51%3A39Brian+Robbhttp%3A%2F%2Fcelticshub.com%2F%3Fp%3D7214

Tonight, the Rockets came into this contest without Shane Battier, Kevin Martin and Trevor Ariza. On paper, there was no way these guys could hang with the C’s. They were dressing nine guys with two of them barely belonging on an NBA roster.

Things looked to be going to plan, in the early stages of the 1st quarter as C’s built a 22-11 lead, but unsurprisingly, the C’s let Houston back into it, giving up 32 for the first frame and we suddenly had a ballgame on our hands.

The C’s offense was there all night, but the defense, minus a 6 minute stretch at the start of the 4th quarter, wasn’t. Give Houston credit, they made the big shots when they needed to, behind Chase Budinger and Aaron Brooks, who hit the game tying 3 ball with 9 seconds left, but the C’s kept the door open all night long, especially late in the 4th quarter, and the Rockets took advantage of it.

A couple quick thoughts on this one before more analysis in the morning

* Luis Scola, Brooks and Budinger were the three headed monster tonight, all playing 45 plus minutes, combining for 81 of Houston’s 119 points. C’s had no answer for any of these guys. Scola and Brooks we knew about, but C’s made Budinger look like an All-Star tonight.

* Consider Tony Allen officially ahead of Marquis Daniels on the depth chart after tonight’s effort. Doc dug deep tonight into the bench to find some flow and consistency and he got it from TA, Shelden, Sheed, Finley and Rondo leading the way.

* Paul Pierce is too banged up right now to create his own shot off the dribble in closing situations.

* Ray Allen fouled out in just 16 minutes of playing time. Nice to see team score 114 points without him, but his presence for the final 9 minutes of this contest hurt this team’s chances immensly.

* Other good news from this game, how good Perk looked on the post offensively. Moved around well, scored 7 of 10 field goals against Houston’s non-centers. The rebounding however, especially on the C’s starting front line was an issue, as Perk and KG combined for 5 and 3 boards.

* Nate Robinson is doing nothing for this team right now. This could change, but he’s been resigned to Eddie House on the offensive end, except he is shooting 3′s with less accuracy.

That’s it for now. Frustrating loss. Ugly loss. Quotes from the locker room and additional analysis on the way tomorrow.