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Indiana Pacers (32-42) at Boston Celtics (33-41)
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
7:30 PM ET
Regular Season Game #75, Home Game #38
TV: CSNNE, FSI, NBA-TV
Radio: 98.5 Sports Hub, 1070 The Fan
TD Garden
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
Head CoachBrad Stevens
Pacers Reserves Chris Copeland
Damjan Rudez
Lavoy Allen
Shayne Whittington
Luis Scola
Donald Sloan
CJ Watson
Ian Mahinmi
Rodney Stuckey
InjuriesPaul George (tibia) out
CJ Miles (ankle) questionable
Head CoachFrank Vogel
Game Notes The Celtics host the Indiana Pacers in yet another must win game. This is the 4th and final meeting between these two teams this season. The Celtics are up 2-1 in the series, having won the first game101-96 at home and the most recent game 93-89 in Indiana, ending a 7 game win streak for the Pacers. The Pacers won the second game of the series at home 107-103.
The Celtics bench has been coming up big for the Celtics and they will need to play well in this game also. The Pacers bench averages 40.9 points per game, which is good for 2nd in the league. They also average 19.5 rebounds, which leads the league. The Celtics will need a good defensive effort from their bench as well as putting up points.
The Pacers are playing in the second of back to back games after losing to Brooklyn on the road on Tuesday night. The game went down to the wire and so they weren't able to rest their starters. The Pacers are 5-11 in the second game of back to backs this season. They are 3-2 in the second game when both games are on the road.
With the Nets win over the Pacers on Tuesday, the Celtics once again drop back to the 9th spot, 1/2 game behind the Nets who move up to 8th. The Pacers are 1 game behind the Celtics and the Hornets are 1.5 games behind the Celtics. There are two other games to keep an eye on. Brooklyn will be playing at the Knicks and though they are playing in back to back games, they should easily beat the Knicks. Also, Detroit is playing at Charlotte.
CJ Miles left the Pacers game on Tuesday with an ankle sprain and didn't return. He is listed as day to day for this game. There have been rumors that Paul George would return for their games down the stretch but is not expected to be available for this game. This is a must win for the Celtics if they hope to stay in the playoff race. A win would help them keep pace with the Nets and also give them the tie breaker against Indiana should that come into play.
Key Matchups vs
Tyler Zeller vs Roy Hibbert
In the game that the Pacers won, Hibbert finished with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 5 blocks. In the Celtics win over the Pacers in March, the Celtics held Hibbert to 5 points on 2-6 shooting along with 7 rebounds and 1 block. Hopefully the Celtics can once again limit his production in this game.
vs
Marcus Smart vs George Hill
George Hill runs the Pacers' offense and it will be important for Smart to keep him from getting into their sets quickly. In their last meeting, Hill went off for 30 points along with 5 rebounds, 8 assists and 1 steal so the Celtics will also need to keep him from going off offensively.
Honorable Mention Brandon Bass vs David West
West is averaging 11.9 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists but he is capable of having a big game if not defended well. In the last meeting between these two teams, he finished with 11 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists.
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. The Pacers are playing on the second night of back to back games and so the Celtics need to push the pace throughout the game and maybe they will wear them out.
Defense - Even though the Pacers aren't necessarily a high scoring team, averaging 96.9 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 97.3 points per game (5th in the league), playing good defense themselves will be the Celtics' best bet to beat them.
Rebound - The Pacers are 7th in the league in rebounding at 44.5 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 - 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.
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. Good things happen when the Celtics make an effort to get to the basket.
Effort and Focus - The Celtics need to bring their best effort to get a win in this game. If they come out with a sub par effort as they have in several of their losses, they won't have a chance. They need to play with effort on both ends of the court. They also have to stay focused. When they lose focus, their game suffers on both ends and they can't hit their shots and can't get stops.
X-Factors
Urgency and Focus Both of these teams are playing for their playoff lives. The team that has the most urgency in their game and plays like they want it more, especially on the defensive end, will get the win. Hopefully that is the Celtics.
Topic: Pacers (32-42) at Celtics (33-41) Game #75 4/1/15 (Read 50528 times)