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Boston Celtics (28-36) at Indiana Pacers (30-34)
Saturday, March 14, 2015
7:00 PM ET
Regular Season Game #65, Road Game #32
TV: CSNNE, FSI, NBA-TV, NBA-TV Canada
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 1070 The Fan
Bankers Life Fieldhouse
Probable Starting Matchups
Point Guard 
vs
Marcus Smart vs George Hill
Shooting Guard 
vs
Avery Bradley vs CJ Miles
Small Forward 
vs
Evan Turner vs Solomon Hill
Power Forward 
vs
Brandon Bass vs Davis West
Center 
vs
Tyler Zeller vs Roy Hibbert
Celtics Reserves Gerald Wallace
Jae Crowder
James Young
Phil Pressey
Shavlik Randolph
Isaiah Thomas
Jonas Jerebko
Gigi Datome
Kelly Olynyk
InjuriesJared Sullinger (foot) out
Isaiah Thomas (back,elbow) out
Head CoachBrad Stevens
Pacers Reserves Pacers Reserves
Chris Copeland
Damjan Rudez
Lavoy Allen
Shayne Whittington
Luis Scola
Donald Sloan
Rodney Stuckey
CJ Watson
Ian Mahinmi
InjuriesRoy Hibbert (elbow) questionable
Paul George (tibia) out
Game Notes The Celtics visit the Pacers for the 3rd of 4 games this season. The two teams have split the first two games with each team winning on their home court. Both games were close with the Celtics winning 101-98 in Boston and the Pacers winning 107-103 in overtime in Indy. They will meet once more in Boston on April 1.
The Pacers are one of the hottest teams in the league right now, looking for their 8th straight win. The Celtics have been playing very well also, having won 8 of their last 11 games and three tough games in a row. Luis Scola described the Celtics as the Pacers' biggest rival for playoff seeding.
Roy Hibbert missed the Pacers' win over the Bucks on Thursday with a sore elbow and is listed as questionable for this game. If Hibbert can't go, Ian Mahinmi will probably get the start at center once again. Paul George was rumored to be possibly back for this game but he is listed as out. For the Celtics, they will be without Isaiah Thomas once again as well as Jared Sullinger.
The Celtics are 7-3 in their last 10 games and are 11-20 on the road. The Pacers are 9-1 in their last 10 games and 18-14 at home. The Celtics are playing in the second of back to back games and had to grind out a win over the Magic on the night before. But, the Celtics are very good on the second night of back to backs, going 8-5 this season so far. However they are just 1-4 when the first game is at home and the second is on the road.
Key Matchups vs
Tyler Zeller vs Roy Hibbert
Hibbert missed Thursday's game against the Bucks with an elbow injury and is questionable for this game. He had missed the game before the Celtics last game against the Pacers and was also listed as questionable for that game. He ended up playing in that game and finished with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 5 blocks. It would be a huge break for the Celtics if the 7'2" center is out.
vs
Brandon Bass vs David West
West is averaging 12.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, and has torched the Celtics in the past. It will be important to limit his impact on the game. Brandon Bass has been playing very well on both ends of the court and hopefully that will continue in this game.
Honorable Mention Marcus Smart vs George Hill
Hill is averaging 13.9 points, 3.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists. Smart will need to play good defense and keep Hill from getting the Pacers into their sets quickly. Between Smart and Avery Bradley, the Celtics backcourt needs to slow down the Pacers' back court. CJ Miles scored 17 in their last meeting so keeping these two down will be key.
Keys to the Game
Push the Pace - The Celtics are most effective when they run and move the ball. They struggle when they slow the pace of the game down. In spite of playing in back to back games, they need to run on every possession. However, when they push the pace they have to focus more to avoid the turnovers that can derail their game.
Defense - Even though the Pacers aren't necessarily a high scoring team, averaging 96.7 points per game, the Celtics still need to play tough team and individual defense as they have players who are capable of having big offensive nights. Also, since the Pacers are a very good defensive team, allowing only 96.1 points per game (3rd in the league), playing good defense themselves will be the Celtics' best bet to beat them.
Rebound - The Pacers are 5th in the league in rebounding at 45.1 rebounds per game, thanks in part to their 7'2" center. The Celtics will need to put out extra effort to crash the boards as a team in order to prevent second chance points for the Pacers. The Celtics can't score without the ball and so they need to grab rebounds to give themselves more scoring opportunities.
Be Aggressive and Play Hard - The Celtics need to play hard and be aggressive from start to finish. They have to be more aggressive on the boards, in diving for loose balls, in going hard to the hoop, and just play harder on both ends of the court. They have won 3 games in a row by being the more aggressive team, especially down the stretch. They need to keep that up in this game.
Don't Depend on 3 Pointers - If the 3's are falling, it's really great, but too often they aren't and the Celtics wast possession after possession by jacking up 3's with the rebounds going to their opponents. The Celtics beat the Magic because they finally started going inside down the stretch. If the 3's aren't falling in this game, the Celtics need to get inside and score there.
X-Factors
Fatigue and Road Game The Celtics are playing in the second of back to back games and they had to travel overnight. It's possible that fatigue could set in. Also, they are on the road and sometimes young teams struggle with focus on the road. They have won some big games on the road recently and so hopefully they can keep that going in this one.
Topic: Celtics (28-36) at Pacers (30-34) Game#65 3/14/15 (Read 56303 times)