at
Miami Heat (32-37) at Boston Celtics (31-39)
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #71, Home Game #36
TV: CSNNE, SunSports, NBA-LP 759(DTV)/755(Xfinity)
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 104.3 The Ticket
TD Garden
vs
Marcus Smart vs Goran Dragic
Shooting Guard 
vs
Avery Bradley vs Dwyane Wade
Small Forward 
vs
Evan Turner vs Luol Deng
Power Forward 
vs
Brandon Bass vs Michael Beasley
Center
vs
Tyler Zeller vs Udonis Haslem
ReservesGerald Wallace
Jae Crowder
Phil Pressey
Shavlik Randolph
Jonas Jerebko
Gigi Datome
Kelly Olynyk
InjuriesJared Sullinger (foot) out
Isaiah Thomas (back) probable
James Young (Red Claws)
Head CoachBrad Stevens
ReservesShabazz Napier
Mario Chalmers
James Ennis
InjuriesJosh McRoberts (meniscus) out
Chris Bosh (blood clots) out
Hassan Whiteside (hand) doubtful
Chris Andersen (calf) questionable
Tyler Johnson (illness) questionable
Head CoachErik Spoelstra
Game NotesThe Celtics host the Miami Heat for the 4th and final meeting this season. The Heat lead the series 2-1 with a 100-84 win in Miami in December and an 83-75 win in Boston in February. The Celtics won their last meeting 100-90 in Miami on March 9. But that win proved costly in that Isaiah Thomas injured his back in that game and hasn't played since.
But, the Celtics could get a boost in this game from the return of their sharp shooting point guard. After the Celtics win over the Nets on Monday night, Brad Stevens said that it is "as close to probable as it gets" for Isaiah to return for this game vs the Heat. Hopefully he can steer clear of Dwyane Wade and his thuggish ways in this one.
The Heat are playing in the second of back to back games after losing a 1 point game in Milwaukee on Tuesday. The Heat are 6-9 on the second night of back to back games. They are also 5-10 in Wednesday night games, the worst record of any night of the week.
The Celtics are 18-17 at home while the Heat are 15-19 on the road. Both teams are 6-4 in their last 10 games. The Heat currently occupy the 7th spot in the race for the playoffs with the Celtics just one game behind them. The Celtics are currently the 8th seed, just 1/2 game above the Hornets and 1 game above the Pacers.
For those watching the scoreboard, Brooklyn is playing at Charlotte and Indiana is at Washington.
Every game from now until the end of the season are must win games. The Celtics can control their playoff destiny if they win their games. So far they have had some help with the Pacers and Hornets losing along with them, but they can't depend on other teams to lose. They have to win their own games.
Key Matchups vs
Marcus Smart vs Goran Dragic
Dragic didn't play in the last meeting between these two teams so his will be the first matchup between these two. Dragic is averaging 16.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 4.4 assists. Dragic is fast and has the ability to get to the rim. Smart will need to slow him down and thus slow down the Heat's offense. Dragic played 40 minutes on Tuesday night and so hopefully he will tire down the stretch.
vs
Avery Bradley vs Dwyane Wade
Wade is one of the dirtiest players in the league. Bradley has always done a good job of slowing him down and hopefully that will continue in this game. Wade is averaging 21.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.2 assists. And, hopefully Wade and his merry band of thugs don't injure any more of the Celtics players. Wade played over 30 minutes in their loss at Milwaukee on Tuesday night and hopefully will run out of gas in this one.
Honorable Mention
Tyler Zeller vs Hassan Whiteside Whiteside has been playing very well, averaging 11.2 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per game. He was ejected from the last game between these two teams for shoving Kelly Olynyk from behind. Zeller will need to keep Whiteside off the boards especially.
Player to Watch
Dwyane Wade https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4E10SQYgxlAWade is one of the dirtiest players in the league and it seems that every player that joins him on the Heat takes on his thuggish ways. Celtics need to keep an eye on Wade and not allow him to injure another Celtic.
Keys to the Game DefenseDefense wins games. The Heat are allowing just 97.0 points per game. The Celtics have been playing good defense recently and they will need to match the Heat's defensive intensity in order to get a win in this game.
ReboundThe Heat are dead last in the league in rebounding, pulling down 38.8 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 keep him off the glass.
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. They need to play hard from start to finish.
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. 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.
Play Team Ball The Celtics need to move the ball like they did in the game against the Nets and during their 5 game win streak. Against the Pistons, they stopped moving the ball and stopped playing as a team. Hero ball won't win games. They also need to take care of the ball and not make careless passes.
X-Factors
IT and Focus The Celtics would get a big boost if Isaiah Thomas does indeed come back for this game. Also, the Celtics must keep their focus and make their shots as well as take care of the ball.
Topic: Heat (32-37) at Celtics (31-39) Game #71 3/25/14 (Read 44439 times)