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Boston Celtics (25-36) at Miami Heat (28-34)
Monday, March 9, 2015
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #62, Road Game #31
TV: CSNNE, SunSports, NBA-LP 754(DTV), 753/754(xfinity)
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 104.3 The Ticket
American Airlines ArenaProbable Starting Matchups
Point Guard vs
Marcus Smart vs Goran Dragic
Shooting Guard vs
Small Forward vs
Jae Crowder vs Luol Deng
Power Forward vs
Brandon Bass vs Udonis Haslem
Center vs
ReservesGerald Wallace
Jae Crowder
James Young
Phil Pressey
Shavlik Randolph
Isaiah Thomas
Jonas Jerebko
Gigi Datome
Kelly Olynyk
InjuriesAvery Bradley (elbow) out
Jared Sullinger (foot) out
Evan Turner (toe) probable
Head CoachBrad Stevens
ReservesHeat ReservesShabazz Napier
Chris Andersen
Tyler Johnson
Michael Beasley
Mario Chalmers
James Ennis
InjuriesJosh McRoberts (meniscus) out
Chris Bosh (blood clots) out
Luol Deng (thigh) questionable
Goran Dragic (back) questionable
Udonis Haslem (knee) questionable
Hassan Whiteside (ankle) questionable
Head CoachErik Spoelstra
Game NotesThe Celtics face the Heat for the 3rd of 4 meetings this season. The Heat are 2-0 in the series so far. The Heat beat the Celtics 100-84 in the first meeting in December in Miami and then in February, they again beat the Celtics 83-75 in Boston. The Celtics 75 points marked the fewest points of the season for the Celtics.
This is a must win for the Celtics if they hope to get that 8th seed in the playoffs. With the Celtics loss to the Magic and a win for the Hornets on Monday night, the Celtics fell to 2.5 games behind Indiana and Miami for the 8th seed. The Celtics could make up a full game on Miami with a win in this one.
The Heat have several players who are questionable for this game, including 4 of their starters. Dragic (back), Deng (thigh), Haslem (knee), and Whiteside (ankle) are all questionable for this game. All but Haslem missed the Heat's last game. Napier (PG), Walker (SF), and Andersen (C) would get the start should the regular starters not be able to go.
the Celtics are playing in the second of back to back games. They are 7-5 in the second game of back to backs. They are 3-1 in the second of back to back games when both games are on the road. However, they are only 1-4 in the first game of road/road back to backs.
The Heat are 6-4 in their last 10 games while the Celtics are 5-5 in their last 10. The Celtics are 10-20 on the road. while the Heat are 13-17 at home.
Key Matchups vs
Evan Turner vs Dwyane Wade
Wade is the Heat's leading scorer and it will be important for the Celtics to slow him down. Wade is averaging 20.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists. We may see Marcus Smart guarding Wade if he starts to get hot.
vs
Tyler Zeller vs Hassan Whiteside
In their last meeting, Whiteside led the Heat with Whiteside 20 points, nine rebounds and three blocks. Zeller needs to keep Whiteside away from the paint and limit his ability to affect the Celtics shots at the basket.
Keys to the Game
DefenseDefense wins games. The Heat are allowing just 97.0 points per game while the Celtics are allowing 102.4 points per game. Defense will be a big key to getting a win.
ReboundThe Heat are dead last in the league in rebounding, pulling down 38.7 rebounds per game. Crashing the boards will give the Celtics extra possessions as well as keeping the Heat from getting fast breaks and second chance points. However, Hassan Whiteside has been cleaning up on the glass in recent games and the Celtics need to work hard to win the rebounding battle.
Be AggressiveThe Celtics have to be aggressive in going to the basket and not settle for jumpers, especially if the jumpers aren't falling. They have to dive for loose balls and be aggressive in crashing the boards. They can't afford to slack off or to allow the Heat to play harder than them.
Play Hard for 48 MinutesThe starters need to come out and play aggressively from the beginning and the second unit needs to come in and pick up where they leave off. They have to attack the basket and be aggressive on defense for the whole 48 minutes. No letting up. The Celtics started aggressively vs the Magic, but then they let up when they got a big lead. They need to play hard from start to finish no matter who is out for the Heat or what the score is.
Run and Take it to the HoopThe Celtics need to run on every possession. They have the legs to keep it up and not let up and to tire the Heat out, especially if they are short handed. The Celtics also have to go to the basket and not settle for jumpers. Every game they have offensive droughts when their shots just won't go. When that happens, they have to go inside and not continue to hoist up jumpers.
X-Factors
Motivation and FatigueThese two teams are fighting to make the playoffs. Currently, the Heat are 2.5 games up on the Celtics, but a win here for the Celtics would allow them to gain a whole game on them. They need to motivated to play harder and they need to keep their focus. The Celtics are playing in back to back games while the Heat have been off since Saturday. Fatigue could come into play down the stretch.