Celtics (4-6) at Grizzlies (10-2) Game #11 11/21/14

[FLCeltsFan]

at
Boston Celtics (4-6) at Grizzlies (10-2)
Friday, November 21, 2014
8:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #11, Road Game #5
TV: CSNNE, SportSouth, NBA-LP 757 (DTV),755 (Xfinity)
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, WMFS
Fed Ex Forum


Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard
vs
Rajon Rondo vs Mike Conley

Shooting Guard
vs
Avery Bradley vs Quincy Pondexter

Small Forward
vs
Jeff Green vs Tayshaun Prince

Power Forward
  vs 
Jared Sullinger vs Zach Randolph

Center
vs
Kelly Olynyk vs Marc Gasol



Reserves

Phil Pressey
Evan Turner
Marcus Thornton
Brandon Bass
Dwight Powell
Tyler Zeller
James Young
Gerald Wallace

Injuries
Vitor Faverani (knee) out
Marcus Smart (ankle) out

Reserves
Quincy Pondexter
Vince Carter
Jordan Adams
Tayshaun Prince

Injuries
Tony Allen (Stomach virus) questionable
Courtney Lee (stomach virus)  questionable
Jon Leuer (stomach virus) questionable
Jarnell Stokes (stomach virus) questionable
Kosta Koufos (stomach virus)  questionable
Beno Udrih (stomach virus) questionable
Nick Calathes (suspended) out 

Game Notes
The Celtics complete their two game road trip with a game against the Memphis Grizzlies.  The Grizzlies have been hit hard with a stomach virus.  Wednesday vs Toronto, they dressed only 10 players with Courtney Lee, Tony Allen, Beno Udrih, Jon Leuer, and Kosta Koufos all spending time in the hospital for dehydration and then were sent home on a charter flight.  All five are listed as questionable for this game along with Jarnell Stokes also being listed as questionable. 

On Wednesday, in a loss to the Raptors, the Grizzlies started Quincy Pondexter at shooting guard instead of Courtney Lee and Tayshaun Prince at small forward in place of Tony Allen.  Lee and Allen are both listed as questionable for this game but if they can play, I'm sure they would both love to face their former team. 

The Grizzlies have the best record in the league but they have played much better against Western teams than Eastern teams.  They are 7-0 against the West and are averaging 104.0 points in those games.  In 5 games against the East, they are 2-2 and are averaging just 89.4 points per game. 

The Grizzlies are 6-0 at home while the Celtics are 2-2 on the road.  The Celtics are looking for their first back to back wins of the season.  The Grizzlies swept the season series from the Celtics the past two years.  I'll consider it a win if the Celtics escape Memphis without catching the stomach virus that has decimated the Grizzlies this week.

Key Matchups 
  vs 
Jared Sullinger vs Zach Randolph
So far the Grizzlies' starting front court are still healthy and they are also very tough.  Zach Randolph is averaging 16.6 points, 11.8 rebounds and 0.1 blocks per game and will be a tough matchup for Sully. 

vs
Kelly Olynyk vs Marc Gasol
The other half of the Grizzlies starting front court is averaging 18.0 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks.  Stopping both Randolph and Gasol will be key for the Celtics. 

Keys to the Game
Defense - Defense is always key to getting a win.   The Celtics must defend especially in the paint where the Grizzlies can be very dangerous. 

Set the Pace - With half the Grizzlies suffering from a stomach virus,  if the Celtics can run and keep the pace of the game up throughout the game and not slow down, they could wear them down.

Play 48 Minutes -  This follows setting the pace.  The Celtics can't just run half the game.  They have to run for the entire game.  They also can't let up down the stretch and have to focus especially at the end of the game. 

Rebound -  Crashing the boards won't be all that easy with Randolph and Gasol crowding the paint.  But the Celtics must put out extra effort to grab as many rebounds as they can because they have to get the ball in order to score and they must keep the Grizzlies from scoring easy second chance points. 

X-Factors
Road Game and Underestimating
The Celtics are on the road and winning on the road is usually more difficult for young teams.  They will need to bring some extra focus in order to pull this one out.  With half the Grizzlies suffering from a stomach virus,  this may be the best time to catch them but the Celtics can't underestimate them because they still have plenty of talent on the team even with all of the illness

[celticslove]

TP FL for the great work as usual. hope we can sneak one against memphis.

[hwangjini_1]

thanks yet again. soon you will be the only cb poster who has more tps than posts. 

celtics win big in this one! how do i know? i dont, i simply wallow in delusion as often as i can.

goooooooo celtics!!!

[Kuberski33]

Another team where the matchups at the 4-5 are just terrible from the standpoint of the Celtics defense.  Guessing Zeller gets the call over KO to start.  Maybe though the C's are catching these guys at the right time given Memphis' health issues + the early success they've had.  They may be due for a clunker.

[Who]

It will be interesting to see how Olynyk fares defensively against Marc Gasol.

[hwangjini_1]

It will be interesting to see how Olynyk fares defensively against Marc Gasol.

perhaps "interesting" is not the correct word.

[pokeKingCurtis]

It will be interesting to see how Olynyk fares defensively against Marc Gasol.

perhaps "interesting" is not the correct word.

Sobering

[LatterDayCelticsfan]

BOLD PREDICTION. Kelly Olynyk's 1st NBA triple double. You read it here first.

[fairweatherfan]

It will be interesting to see how Olynyk fares defensively against Marc Gasol.

perhaps "interesting" is not the correct word.

Sobering

I don't know, I can stay drunk a lot longer than it takes Kelly to get into foul trouble.

[hwangjini_1]

It will be interesting to see how Olynyk fares defensively against Marc Gasol.

perhaps "interesting" is not the correct word.

Sobering

I don't know, I can stay drunk a lot longer than it takes Kelly to get into foul trouble.

given that olly fouls at a rate of 5.5 per 36 minutes, that wont be much of a challenge will it.

[Eddie20]

It will be interesting to see how Olynyk fares defensively against Marc Gasol.

I wouldn't be surprised if Zeller gets the start instead of Olynyk, due to the matchup.

[cb8883]

Hopefully the Celtics start Olynyk. I want to see the Grizzilies win a fast paced, high scoring, close game. I want this team to grow and play tough but they will not derail my dreams for Towns or Okafor.

#justtankbaby

[SHAQATTACK]

It will be interesting to see how Olynyk fares defensively against Marc Gasol.

I wouldn't be surprised if Zeller gets the start instead of Olynyk, due to the matchup.

Exactly...TP!

[D.o.s.]

It will be interesting to see how Olynyk fares defensively against Marc Gasol.

perhaps "interesting" is not the correct word.

Sobering

I don't know, I can stay drunk a lot longer than it takes Kelly to get into foul trouble.

That sounds like a challenge to me.

[FLCeltsFan]

Thanks celticslove and TP back at ya for being the first to post in the thread!   Go Celtics!!