Top Story
Not So Fast
After a dominating game 3 win for the Boston Celtics against the Philadelphia 76ers, Philly knew they had to play their heart out to tie this series up or else the future would be very bleak. It didn't start off so well for Philly, because Boston came out firing on all cylinders. Boston outscored Philly 24-12 in the first quarter & then 22-19 in the 2nd, leading to an impressive 46-31 lead at halftime. The game was so lopsided that Philadelphia was booed by their homecourt fans.
Some teams would probably crawl into their shell after a half like that. It was the biggest game of the year for a young team that nobody even expected to be in this round & they were getting punk'd out. The fans booing them may have a motivating factor, though, because they came out ready to play in the 3rd quarter. Philly's offense emerged in the 3rd quarter as they dropped 28 points on Boston & only gave up 17 to the Celtics. The 76ers were back in the game. Still, Boston had the lead going into the 4th, Philly would have to play that much better to complete this miraculous comeback. They did just that. Philly is a team centered around depth, they don't really have that prototypical "superstar" player. Their proverbial "best" player showed up last night, though. Their potential Olympic representative Andre Iguodala put the team on his back & led the 76ers to an improbable victory against the mighty Celtics. It was Iggy's 16 points that helped propel the 76ers, including 5 straight points for Philly in the final minute & a half when the game was tied. With less than 2 minutes left, Iguodala calmly took a step back jumper & drained a go-ahead shot to put the 76ers up 85-83. Immediately after that, Rajon Rondo had his shot blocked & Philly was back on the attack. Iguodala sank a 3 point shot for the dagger, giving Philly a 5 point lead & causing the passionate fans, the very ones who were booing this team earlier, to go into a frenzy. 76ers somehow win 92-83.
I wrote in my small prediction yesterday that I believed if the Celtics could get the kind of stellar production they got from Rondo, Kevin Garnett, & Paul Pierce in game 3, then game 4 would be just as easy for them. It started off that way, but they fizzled fast. Garnett no longer looked like he was 10 years younger, he looked old again. Only 9 points after his epic game 3 is definitely not what Boston was looking for. Pierce played well, getting 24 points, but seemed to take a backseat as he watched Rondo try to make plays by himself, even though he is not a play-making point guard. Brandon Bass had a good first half, but disappeared in the 2nd half, finishing with 15 points. What's really hurting the Celtics is the lack of production from their former all-star shooting guard, Ray Allen. He played 31 minutes but only scored 5 points. He has been disturbingly quiet this series & God knows they could have used him last night. This supporting cast is awful for Boston, the stars need to make the plays & they just didn't last night in the 2nd half. Keyon Dooling was bricking shots left & right while no one else could even pray to hit the rim. Philly, on the other hand, has great depth & put their trust in all of their players to complete the comeback. Evan Turner, their much maligned former lottery pick, poured in 16 points for them while the runner-up for 6th Man of the Year, Lou Williams, scored 15 points off the bench, 13 of which he scored in the 2nd half. Williams was really the spark this team desperately needed in the 2nd half. All of Philly's starters had a negative +/- rating, save for Evan Turner who finished neutral at 0. Williams, on the other hand, finished with an impeccable +28 rating. Add in 12 points off the bench from Thaddeus Young, 9 from Jodie Meeks, & 8 from Lavoy Allen & you've got some pretty solid bench production. Philly's bench outscored Boston's 44-12.
Game 5 will be played on Monday as this series has quickly become one of the more exciting ones left in the playoffs. It's anyone's guess as to how the next game will play out. After watching Boston dominate game 3 & the first half of game 4, you gotta believe they have what it takes to shut down this young 76ers team. The thing that keeps Philly more than just alive, but with legitimate reason to believe they can win is their depth & confidence. Boston has their big 3 of Rondo, Pierce, & Garnett, but that's about it. If they don't perform, they're screwed. Philadelphia, however, has a rotation that goes about 8 men deep. Boston will be playing at home on Monday, which should give them the emotional charge they may need to shake off this heartbreaking loss. Philly seems to play off the energy their crowd gives them, it's time for this young team to prove they can win pivotal games on the road. I still believe Boston ultimately wins this series, but this has 7 games written all over it.
