The Celtics enter game three of their playoff series with the Indiana Pacers tonight tied at one game a piece. After giving the wounded Pacers a sound thrashing in game one the Celtics inexplicably let game two slip through their hands by squandering a 6 point lead with 4 minutes and 50 seconds to go by scoring a grand total of 3 points down the stretch.
It is no secret that the Pacers are ripe to be knocked off. The suspension of Ron Artest, the loss of Jamal Tinsley, the less than one hundred percent Jermaine O’Neal and the age of Reggie Miller severely tests the limits of the club physically in a seven game series. Being ripe and being exploited however require execution by the Celtics and until they prove they can do that on the Indiana home court this series is up for grabs.
There are a number of keys to focus on tonight. First and foremost is Reggie Miller. The Celtics must make Reggie look like he is 39 years old. In game one a combination of Tony Allen, Ricky Davis and Delonte West held Miller to 7 points on 1 for 7 shooting from the field. The same Miller and defenders resulted in Reggie torching the Celts for 28 points, shooting 9 for 18 from the field and 7 for 8 from the line.
The Celtics must get more balanced scoring from the entire club. In game one Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce took 27 out of 74 shots versus game two in which they went for 32 attempts out of a total of 67 shots taken. Game one resulted in the two combining for a total of 25 points in a convincing win while in game two they combined for a total 52 points in a disappointing loss.
Another factor is Ricky Davis as a scoring option. He is unlikely to repeat the 1 for 8 performance of game 2 but he has to focus more on the game and less on trash talking. Mark Blount has so far contributed virtually nothing to the Celtic cause. If he continues to look like a dead body then Coach Rivers has to act swiftly to give his minutes to Al Jefferson and Kendrick Perkins. If the team goes down in this series then at the very least the younger players should be able to benefit from the experience meaningful playoff minutes will provide.
Indiana is a seasoned club with excellent coaching however they are severely wounded and should be able to be over come however they are not going to rollover. If the Celtics want to advance they are going to have to provide a maximum effort in the next two games and win one on the opponent’s court in order to regain the home advantage. Regaining the home court and winning the series would be made a great deal easier if they buckle down and take care of business tonight.
