They Wanted This One: Celtics 105, Bucks 90
Posted by Brendan Jackson on Apr 10, 2010
Celts Win! Celts Win!
ESPN Box Score • Bucksketball • BrewHoop
The Celtics shake off some cold shooting in the first half and ramp up their defense in the second to top the Bucks tonight in Milwaukee. The effort was there the whole way through, but it wasn’t until Paul Pierce took over the fourth quarter that the Celtics were able to really put this game away. There isn’t much to read into for this game. The Celtics pushed the pace beautifully as Rajon Rondo out dueled Brandon Jennings in the team game. Jennings may have solidified his outside shot as a formidable weapon, but when it came to the team game, he was resigned to simply initiating the offense instead of being the penultimate player per possession.
Another perspective any Celtic fan needs to keep in mind is the “no show” by the Bucks’ giant-killers. The inside-outside game by the Bucks versatile wing players (Carlos Delfino, Ersan Ilyasoza) is usually too much for the Celtics to handle. Luckily, last night these players shot very poorly- even on uncontested jumpers. Ilyasova was 4 for 12 with nothing coming from downtown while Delfino was similarly inept going 4 for 13 and missing 4 of 6 from deep. Despite Pierce’s seemingly personal mission to be intensely aggressive on both ends of the floor (which we’ll revisit in bullet form), the Bucks shooters were still getting open shots. They were just missing them.
The best thing that can be said about this game is that every Celtic played within their means. Every transitional moment was a seamless operation. It is well documented that the C’s begin every game trying to get Ray Allen going. Last night was no exception as Ray started the game coming off curls and being aggressive. His mid-range game was absolute butter last night and it was beautiful thing. Then, before Ray could be shut down, Rondo took over the reins and got Rasheed Wallace involved. Rasheed took a three early in the game with too much time on the shot-clock and I remember thinking that he will never get it. He made the shot, but that did not doing anything to assuage my annoyance. Then, a magnificent thing happened: Wallace began rebounding. He began getting his nose dirty in the trenches, finding that some boards easily found their way to his outstretched Jack Skellington arms. Rasheed was also aggressive, fighting for second chance points and only stopping to berate the official after he had made the shot. Wallace’s inspired play really came to a head when he laid in a Rondo alley-oop pass after rolling to the basket. Feel free to read that again. Rasheed ROLLED TO THE BASKET. I personally, did not think he remembered how.*
The usual team players also filled their roles nicely last night. Shelden Williams came in, used his bulk to carve out space, tipped passes and got to the line. He also displayed a modicum of lateral quickness- something that the Celtics have not really seen from him all season. Big Baby also was not without his typical play. Davis rebounded the ball and made some impressive spin moves that resulted in him having a mini-Millsap line: 12 points, 7 boards. There was even a patented, “I got fouled and I’m pissed off so I’m going to get up really quickly and just bull into the guy who fouled me” moment (more thoughts in a bullet on this one).
Despite all the positives, this game was still a close contest for the majority of the game. This was due in part to some inconsistency in the first half, some cold shooting in the first half, and failing to close out shooters- in the first half. The second half was a different story. The Celtics exploded for 64 points in the second half and actually outscored the Bucks in the third. A solid third quarter by the Celtics had this point in the season cannot be overlooked. Yes, this is just one game, but this is one game where the Celtics actually played well in the third quarter- something previously unseen this season.
That is the game in a nutshell, now I’m going to crack it open and expand a little more with some bullets:
- Paul Pierce was masterful tonight at going one on one. By the end of the game, I wanted him to take on Jerry Stackhouse and Carlos Delfino. Pierce was nearly as lights out as he was in the 2008 Finals. Prior to this season, it was well documented that Paul just had to get to a spot near either elbow, pull up and the shot was money. This season, though, injuries and inconsistent effort has written a different story. This could just be one hot-handed game, but I’m hoping it is a sign of things to come. I am hoping this is the beginning of the return of his killer instinct.
- I relish in watching Rajon Rondo beat Brandon Jennings. I used to love this kid with tons of talent and enough light-heartedness to rock a “Gumby,” but after rubbing in a Celtics loss by talking trash to KG and for showing up late to the draft (I still believe this was an orchestrated PR move that fell stupidly flat. “With the 10th pick, the Milwaukee Bucks select Brandon Jennings, who is actually here tonight because you all care so much….). Jennings’ play will probably make me love him again, especially when he matures enough to shake hand and play nice, but for right now, I would say he is public enemy number one.
- I did not mind Glen Davis’ reaction to Kurt Thomas’ take down. Thomas threw Davis to the ground with both arms, something that was really uncalled for but called for a much harsher penalty from the refs. Baby’s reaction was appropriate, but his timing was awful. Players had already stepped in to intervene while Baby lay on the ground. It was almost as if Baby thought, “oh man, everyone is expecting a reaction, I can’t let them down.” The reaction itself screamed, “now what?” It was very similar to Ray Allen elbowing Anderson Verajoa in the crutch. Afterwards, neither player knew what to do, so they both just postured. I’m a sucker for good sportsmanship so I was stoked to see Thomas give Davis a “that wasn’t personal” slap on the ass when play resumed.**
- The second scuffle between Jerry Stackhouse and Paul Pierce was just weird. Again, this is all speculation, but it seemed as if Stackhouse was trying to tell Pierce that this was just something he needed to do for his team and Pierce was just confused. There was no pushing or shoving, just weird contact. If you watch the scuffle again, it looks as if Stackhouse is trying to give Pierce an open-palmed purple nurple. After the skirmish, Pierce walks up to Stackhouse with a “what the hell was that all about” look on his face.
- I love watching Scott Skiles from the safety of my living room. He seems like a guy that would chew you out for going for an up-fake in a pickup game. Scary stuff.
- The Bucks really do not like the Celtics- at least for the the next month. Why else would they continue to foul inside a minute and being down ten?
- How does Tony Allen keep playing his way into out hearts? He played solid defense for 22 minutes and even got robbed on some calls. He also only made one boneheaded play that I had to let slide anyway. This was in the second half where Big Baby clearly threw the ball out of bounds and the ref just missed it. Still, the basketball gods did not. The proceeded to allow Tony Allen to dribble up the middle of the court and uncontrollably ram into an awaiting Buck for an offense foul. The world was thus returned to equilibrium.
*Bonus Sheed Moment: What as the deal with that drive and floater? Wallace actually put the ball on the deck for two dribbles and made a baseline floater. It was ugly, coming from a man who cannot bend his knees but it was effective and I, for one, would like to see more of it.
**If you love sportsmanship as much I as do, you would have loved watching Tyrese Rice for four years. This guy was unanimously respected across the ACC, always helped opposing players up off the ground after contact, and shared many prolonged hugs with the opposition after torching them.
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