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Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« on: March 21, 2010, 07:27:49 PM »

Offline FLCeltsFan

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Boston Celtics (45-24) at Utah Jazz (45-25)
Monday, March 22
10:30 PM ET
Game #70, Road Game #37
TV:  CSN-NE, FSR-UT, NBA-LP 760-761
Energy Solutions Arena

Few teams in the NBA can say that they have had the same amount of success as the Utah Jazz have had at Energy Solution Arena. Since the team’s move to this arena more than 15 years ago, the Jazz have had only one losing season. After the Jazz moved from New Orleans after the 1978-79 season they began playing at the Salt Palace. For just over a decade they played at the 12,0000 seat arena. As the 1990s approached, a new modern arena with more seats was needed for the Jazz. Owner of the team, Larry Miller, funded the $93 million cost to construct a new arena. 
Construction began in May 1990 and was completed in record time, 17 months later. Originally known as the Delta Center, the Jazz played their first game at the arena on October 4, 1991. Located on the western part of downtown Salt Lake City, the arena has a seating capacity of 19,911 that includes 668 club seats and 56 luxury suites. In August 1999, the roof was significantly damaged by a tornado, causing $3.75 million in damage. Energy Solutions bought the naming rights to the arena in November 2006, thus it is known as Energy Solutions Arena. The Utah Jazz have been one of the best teams in the NBA while playing at Energy Solutions Arena, appearing in the playoffs 13 times in 16 years.




Probable Starters

Probable Starters
PG:   Rajon Rondo 13.9 PPG  4.4 RPG  9.7 APG   
SG:   Ray Allen 16.2 PPG  3.3 RPG  3.0 APG 
SF:    Paul Pierce 18.1 PPG  4.2 RPG  3.1 APG
PF:    Kevin Garnett 14.2  PPG  7.4 RPG  2.0 APG 
C:     Kendrick Perkins 10.5 PPG  7.7 RPG  1.0 APG

Reserves
Nate Robinson
Rasheed Wallace
Marquis Daniels
Shelden Williams
Brian Scalabrine
Michael Finley
Tony Allen
Glen Davis   

Injuries:
None

D League
Marcus Landry





Probable Starters
PG   Deron Williams  18.3 PPG  4.0 RPG   10.3 APG 
SG:  Wesley Matthews   8.9 PPG   2.1 RPG  1.3 APG 
SF   CJ Miles   9.3 PPG  2.3  RPG 1.3 APG
PF    Carlos Boozer    19.4 PPG   11.2 RPG  3.2 APG
C     Mehmet Okur  12.8  PPG  6.8 RPG  1.7 APG 

Reserves
Paul Millsap
Kyle Korver
Ronnie Price
Othyus Jeffers
Sundiata Gaines
Kosta Koufos

Injuries
Andre Kirlilenko (calf) Game Time Decision
Mehmet Okur  (stomach ailment)  Probable 

Team Connections
Mehmet Okur and Rasheed Wallace were teammates in Detroit during the 2003-04 season
Carlos Boozer and Shelden Williams both played for Duke
Wesley Matthews and Celtics Coach Doc Rivers both attended Marquette

Key Matchups
  vs 
Rajon Rondo vs  Deron Williams 
Rondo has yet another tough matchup with one of the top young PG's in the league.   Williams is strong and quick and Rondo will need to be aggressive on both ends of the court.

  vs 
Paul Pierce vs CJ Miles
Paul Pierce has been hitting his stride in the last few games.  His aggressiveness has gotten the team off to a good start and his clutch play down the stretch has willed the team to the wins.  Hopefully Pierce will continue his strong play in this one. 

Honorable Mention
Kevin Garnett vs Carlos Boozer
KG has been looking good in recent games and should continue his improvement in this game.  He has a height advantage over Boozer and hopefully that will allow him to get his shot off over him. 

Game Notes

 The Celtics are currently leading the season series, 1-0; Celtics and Jazz split the season series 1-1 in the 2008-09 season
 Rajon Rondo led the Celtics with 20.0 points per game last season
 Paul Millsap led the Jazz with 20.0 points per game against the Celtics last season
 The Celtics are 7-4 against the Jazz since the 2004-05 season
 The Celtics are leading the all-time series 45-35 with the Celtics 29-11 at home

The Celtics beat the Jazz 105-86 in Boston back in February.  However, at that time, Deron Williams was just coming off an injury and they had 3 other key players out as well.    On the other hand, The Celtics had Big Baby and Tony Allen out so neither team was at full strength, but the Jazz definitely were depleted by injuries. 

These two teams have almost the same record and are both 7-3 in their last 10 games.  The Celtics are 24-12 on the road while the Jazz are a very good home team with a 28-8 home record.  The Celtics have won 4 in a row while the Jazz are going for their 2nd straight win.   Both are also relatively healthy for this matchup.

Both teams are fighting for playoff position and so are motivated to get the win.  Boston is in the 3rd spot in the East, just half a game up on Atlanta and 3.5 games behind Orlando. They would like to at least stay in that 3rd spot.  Utah is 4th in the West and are 1.5 games behind Dallas for 3rd and 1.5 games ahead of Phoenix for 5th.   

The Celtics have already won the first 2 games on this 3 games in 4 nights road trip and it would be huge for them to close it out with another victory.   It will be a tough game but if they play like they have been recently, they should be up for the task. 

Keys to the Game
Defense  Over the past several games, we have seen the Celtics return to their trademark lock down team defense.  They will need to continue to play this kind of defense as they go down the stretch in preparation of the playoffs.   Defense becomes more and more important the closer they get to the post season. 

Rebound
We have seen a much better effort on the boards in the last few games and that needs to continue.   They need to continue to put out more effort on the boards to limit second chance points  and fast breaks for the Jazz. 

Bench
The Celtics have a deep bench and a talented one,  and the Celtics will need them to contribute in order to allow the starters to rest while still maintaining or widening a lead.  The bench will be the difference between a close game and a blowout.
 
Don't Over-rely on the 3
The Celtics have at times relied too much on the 3 point shot. They have players who can slash to the basket and players who can score inside and if the 3's aren't falling they need to go to the basket. 

X-Factor

Focus
The Celtics are coming off 2 big wins and heading home after this one.  It would be easy to lose focus.  Hopefully, the Celtics have their eyes on the bigger prize in the playoffs and will continue to focus on each game to give them the best position as they head into the post season. 
« Last Edit: March 21, 2010, 10:18:20 PM by FLCeltsFan »

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/21
« Reply #1 on: March 21, 2010, 07:43:27 PM »

Offline Edgar

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tp Fla ... for some reason i think this might be a good game for sheed.
Once a CrotorNat always a CROTORNAT  2 times CB draft Champion 2009-2012

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Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/21
« Reply #2 on: March 21, 2010, 08:12:04 PM »

Offline Spilling Green Dye

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TP for the work on the thread. 

I actually think Utah is going to be very tough to defend against... in particular Boozer & Williams.  Our frontline isn't very quick, and Boozer is lightning fast around the hoop.  Deron Williams is pretty strong and might cause some problems that way. 

Should be a great game!

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/21
« Reply #3 on: March 21, 2010, 08:15:48 PM »

Offline BudweiserCeltic

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Game is on 3/22 by the way. You freaked me out!

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/21
« Reply #4 on: March 21, 2010, 08:49:10 PM »

Offline Bahku

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Thank you for the great set-up FCF ... TP once again. Let's hope we continue this winning streak on the road. ;)
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Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #5 on: March 21, 2010, 10:19:03 PM »

Offline FLCeltsFan

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Game is on 3/22 by the way. You freaked me out!

Sorry for the mistake. Fixed now. 

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #6 on: March 21, 2010, 10:24:10 PM »

Offline nickagneta

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I know it's still 23 hours away but I am getting psyched for this game as the C's recent play is starting to get me pumped.

TP to FL for another great thread

BTW game threads lately have become a fun place to be again. I don't know if there is anyone to thank for this(probably the Celtics first and foremost for better play but that's not who I mean), then thank you!!!

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #7 on: March 21, 2010, 10:54:11 PM »

Offline BudweiserCeltic

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Game is on 3/22 by the way. You freaked me out!

Sorry for the mistake. Fixed now. 

It's fine hehe, somehow I thought I might've missed the game or something.

Hopefully we can keep the streak going, but the Jazz always give us a tough game.

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #8 on: March 21, 2010, 11:32:55 PM »

Offline Q_FBE

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Celtics have had their share of struggles in Utah. Somehow, I think they will keep their recommittment to defense and rebounding going and try for a perfect road trip. That would send a message to the rest of the league that WE MUST BE RECKONED WITH.
The beatings will continue until morale improves

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #9 on: March 22, 2010, 01:38:48 PM »

Offline slamtheking

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I would be absolutely stunned if the C's didn't come out with another full effort tonight.  Looking for a solid win over another really good team on the road. 

Always looking for good signs that the team has picked up its play and is committing to winning games.

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #10 on: March 22, 2010, 02:11:32 PM »

Offline ManUp

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Lets keep the good basketball going.

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #11 on: March 22, 2010, 02:16:33 PM »

Offline nickagneta

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I would be absolutely stunned if the C's didn't come out with another full effort tonight.  Looking for a solid win over another really good team on the road. 

Always looking for good signs that the team has picked up its play and is committing to winning games.
Exactly, this is what I want to see. I'm not going to get crazy if they lose tonight. They are after all playing one of the top 7-8 teams in the league on the road.

But, if they come out and play good defense and move the ball and generally give an excellent effort but for some reason the shots don't fall or the calls don't go their way or the Jazz just play better than they do, I can live with that and still be very, very encouraged about the team. It's kind of the way I felt after the Milwaukee loss in Milwaukee. The C's played really good ball. The Bucks simply played better that night and to me, that was an encouraging sign.

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #12 on: March 22, 2010, 02:29:05 PM »

Offline barefacedmonk

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(Thanks FL. TP.)

WANTED:   *Celtics victory.
                     *Team work, focus, energy and ubuntu.

REWARD:   *A very happy and hopeful fanbase.
                      *Momentum heading towards the playoffs.
                      *Regained swagger.
                      *Improved record and 5 game win streak.

CELTICS HOORAH...CELTICS HOORAH...CELTICS HOORAH...1 2 3 Ubuntu!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqxIrERLYiI                     
                     
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Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #13 on: March 22, 2010, 04:30:44 PM »

Offline ACF

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TP once again.

Re: Celtics (45-24) at Jazz (45-25) 3/22
« Reply #14 on: March 22, 2010, 04:52:48 PM »

Offline RAcker

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That was a dark night in Salt Lake City last season...and not because we lost a game.  I'm such a Debbie Downer.  I don't know why that came to mind.