Unfortunately, I couldn’t catch the game last night but the Bruins did pull out a solid 4-2 victory against one of the better home teams in the NHL. Marchand got on the board with two goals in the game scoring 2:29 into the first. It’s good to see this team have some success on the scoreboard because as of late they have been weak in the goal-scoring department. It doesn’t look like Nathan Horton is coming back any time soon. The Rick Nash trade rumors are starting to swirl and I would love to see the big goal-scorer in a Bruins sweater, but at what cost? He is a special player and an elite goal scorer (and only 27 years old) but he will command at least Tuukka Rask and top D prospect Dougie Hamilton. The Bruins play the Sabres tomorrow night.
The Celtics lost their fifth straight game against the Thunder 119-104. It was always going to be a struggle as the Celtics were missing Rondo (suspension), Jermaine O’Neal (Wrist), Chris Wilcox (Right Abductor), and Brandon Bass (Knee). This led to a shift in the lineup of Paul Pierce to the 4 position and Kevin Garnett to the 5. The Celtics started out well in their new lineup jumping out to a 22-12 lead in the first quarter. The Celtics could not hold the lead though, and once the second unit came onto the floor, the Thunder pounced and went on a 30-3 run. The Thunder continued the hot streak and put up the most points in a half all season (72). James Harden was constantly exposing the Celtics defense as he kept blowing by for easy layups.
Pierce actually had one of his better games of the season, by attacking the rim he got to the line 16 times, scored 23 points, and had 8 assists. Kevin Garnett in his first game back had 23 points on 8-11 shooting. Turnovers still hurt the Celtics as they committed 18 in the game. Doc ended up relying much more on his starters than he wanted to as his subs had a terrible night from the floor. Marquis Daniels was only on the court for five minutes but the Celtics were outscored by 17 during those five minutes.
The Celtics mercifully have the All-Star Break coming up this week and have a full week off until their next game against the Bucks.
Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo will be playing in the All-Star Game as reserves for the Eastern Squad.
Extra Notes:
Kevin Garnett came back after two games from missing due to personal reasons; Pavlovic was the only Celtics player who did not play due to Coaches decision; The Thunder had 50 points in the paint; James Harden was +23 while he was on the floor; The Celtics had 3 offensive rebounds, Kendrick Perkins had 5 on his own.
Avery Bradley Alert
Avery Bradley along with Paul Pierce was the only two players for the Celtics who had a positive +/- for the Celtics. Avery shot well again for a second consecutive game going 5-9 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. We also had two of my favorite Avery moments of the season. In the first half Avery got the ball off of a rebound, dribbled the full length of the court and posterized Kevin Durant. Later on in the game, it looked as if Russell Westbrook had a clear path to the bucket but was tapped by Bradley off the backboard and forced a jump ball. Avery had 5 assists and 3 blocks on the night along with his 12 points. In the games that Rondo has missed, Avery has shown Doc that he is a capable backup and definitely a player that the Celtics should be excited about in the future.
Here’s a link to the Avery bradley Dunk (must watch)
On the agenda today is Left field. Left field looked like it was going to be a very weak spot last month when it was announced that Carl Crawford underwent offseason surgery on his wrist. It was recently announced that Crawford has high hopes to be back for Opening Day, which is great news for the Red Sox. Hopefully he can start living up to his contract.
Anyways, back to the rankings:
(Once again for other positional rankings click here: C–1B–2B–3B–SS)
1. Brett Gardner, Yankees
2. Carl Crawford, Red Sox
3. Desmond Jennings, Rays
4. Nolan Reimold, Orioles
5. Eric Thames, Blue Jays
Brett Gardner was a no brainer in the top spot. If this was said before the season last year, it is almost guaranteed that most of Red Sox Nation would have been up in arms. Gardner has been one of the top defensive outfielders in the past two years (3.2 defensive WAR last year) and he’s a force on the basepaths (at least 47 SB’s in each of the last two years). Gardner came back down to Earth in batting last year from his ridiculous 2010 numbers and saw a drop in his BA (.277 to .259), but he still drew a lot of walks.
Carl Crawford is the true question of this division, and the Red Sox team. After a monster year in 2010, where he had a .307/19/90 line with 47 steals, the Red Sox signed him to a massive contract. Hoping for production close to his 6.1 WAR (wins above replacement) in 2010, they were rewarded with a whopping 0.0 WAR in 2011. Despite this, I can’t stand hearing Sox fans bitch about how bad the guy is. Yes, we overpaid for him, but what big signing haven’t we overpaid for?!? He had a horrible April, along with the rest of the squad, and then as he was starting to get into a groove, he got injured. His wrist was nagging him for a while and his hamstring’s were bothering him all summer. Speed is his forte, and he lost his speed last season, I don’t know what fans expected. I’ve heard how hard of a worker he is and I’m confident he will come back strong this year. It’s great news that he is on pace to come back earlier than initially planned, but I’d rather we make sure we don’t rush this one. Crawford was very consistent for the Rays with the exception of 2008 (marred by injuries) and I am confident he will get his mojo back this year and start to live up to (some) of his money.
Next up is the Tampa Bay Rays leftfielder, Desmond Jennings. Jennings was the main reason that the Rays were able to so willingly part with Crawford (that and the fact that the Sox put way too much money on the table). Jennings came into the big leagues on fire last year hitting .333 throughout July and August, until he finally cooled off in September with a .160 BA. Jennings has been touted as one of the top prospects for the last couple years. He is a great athlete and was voted the most exciting player to watch in the International League in the minors.He is regarded as a top baserunner and defensive player in the minors and I’m really interested in seeing how Jennings does as an everyday guy for the Rays this year.
The fourth spot was the hardest decision to make. Eric Thames was never a big prospect for the Blue Jays organization, but had a good run in his first year in the Majors last year. Nolan Reimold was a highly touted prospect, but is now 28 years old and has yet to make an impact for the Orioles. I’m not sold on Thames considering his struggles against lefties and weak fielding skills. Reimold has yet to pan out in the majors due to injuries and personal problems, but he has been effective in his small samples (13 HR in 267 AB’s last year). He has good speed, which pays off on the basepaths and makes up for his bad instincts in the field. Reimold gets the edge in this matchup due to his greater potential for a full year.
For other positional rankings click here: C–1B–2B–3B–SS
There’s not a whole lot to be happy about right now if you’re a Celtics fan. Pierce and Rondo will be in Orlando for the All-Star game, nice. The Celts showed signs of life and came within 8 points after being down a million last night, great. See what I’m getting at? We have to seek the little things to get some sort of joy lately. With that being said, Avery Bradley’s dunk over Kevin Durant last night can’t go unnoticed. Standing at a whole 6’2″ and weighing 180 lbs, Bradley absolutely posterized one of the league’s best players. Granted he dropped 28 points en route to smoking the Celts, I couldn’t not highlight this dunk, so we’ll just look past the C’s five game skid. Enjoy.
Prediction: Their remaining schedule is no cake walk. Missouri has already beat them once, by 3 points, even though they lost the other night. Oklahoma State is the only team with a losing record that they play, but even they have beaten Missouri. I think it will be tough but they will most likely receive the #1 seed if they can continue to win. They have lost against teams that they should not have lost against.
Thomas Robinson is one of the best players in the league in my opinion, if not the best. He is a 6’10 Junior and will most likely be a top 3 draft pick. He plays 31.1 minutes per night and averages a double-double (17.7 PPG & 11.8 RPG) He shoots almost 55% from the field and puts in 1.8 APG, which is a decent amount for a big man.
Senior Tyshawn Taylor is a great #2 on the team behind Robinson. He scores 16.6 PPG, while averaging 5.1 Assists. He will be a first round draft pick, but most likely a lower one.
Junior Jeff Withey is the surprise this season. He is a 7-footer who puts in 9.5 PPG while grabbing 6.6 boards. He also has high FG% at 56%. If an NBA team really needs a center that they don’t mind working with, he would not be a bad choice. He dropped 25 points against Baylor.
Travis Releford is another Junior guard who is 6’6. He plays nearly 31 minutes per game, and puts in 9.1 PPG, 4.3 RPG, and 2 APG. He also shoots over 50% like two of his teammates.
Elijah Johnson is yet another Junior guard for the Jayhawks. He is only 6’4 but contributes his share of points (8.6) and assists (3.7). He also leads the team in steals with 1.6 per game.
After a miserable two weeks for Celtics fans, were finally getting some good news. Joe Johnson is unable to play in the all star game due to tendinitis in his left knee. The initial reports are that Rajon Rondo is to replace him in the All-Star game. Rondo who is currently serving the second game of his two game suspension for throwing a ball at a referee. He would be the third point guard behind Derrick Rose and Deron Williams. Rondo is averaging 14.8 points, 9.6 assists, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.9 assists. Before his suspension Rondo had exploded for 35 and 32 points and seemed as if he had felt snubbed by the decision.
So I saw Jimmy’s post yesterday about the toughest Bruin on the team, Lucic or Thornton. It’s definitely a toss-up between those two but I’m probably taking Looch because he has the size advantage. However, I honestly believe both of these guys are not the toughest on the team. Two words Adam McQuaid. He is an animal. A throwback hockey player who is tough as nails and will beat the tar out of anyone who messes with his teammates in a manner he does not find appropriate. Sure, Chara would probably beat any of them in a fight but that’s because he is 6’9” 260 lbs. Check out the video below to see a McQuaid beatdown.
With Selection Sunday less than 3 weeks away, I thought it would be a good idea to look into the top teams to try to figure out who will be rewarded the #1 seeds in each bracket. So each day this week, I will be putting up a short summary of each team’s top players, remaining schedule, and other projections.
Prediction:Missouri has had a great season so far. They have only lost three games. Unfortunately, two of those losses were to Kansas State, and a fluke loss to sub-.500 team Oklahoma State by 7 points. Other than that they have been flawless, winning many games by double figures. They beat Kansas once before a few weeks ago, by 3 points, and will face them again on Saturday. This is going to be a close game but they are away. I do not think they will win this game. Since they already have three losses, I do not think they will be a #1 seed come March 11th.
Marcus Denmon is a 6’3 Senior who, in my opinion, is one of the top players in the Big 12. He averages 17.8 PPG, 5.2 RPG, in 33.9 Minutes a night. He has scored over 20 points in 9 games this season. Denmon shoots almost 90% from the free throw line.
Senior Kim English is their #2 scorer with 14.2 PPG, and 4.1 RPG. He also shoots over 50% from the field. He is barely behind Denmon with 32.9 Minutes per game.
Ricardo Ratliffe is the third senior in this line up. He is a 6’8 forward who averages 13.7 PPG on 73% shooting from the field. He also grabs 7 rebounds per contest.
Junior Michael Dixon is a 6’1 guard who puts in 12.6 points of his own, while assisting 3.1. He also shoots almost 90% from the foul line.
Flip Pressey is the young gun on the team. He is merely a sophomore and scores 10 PPG on 31.4 minutes per game. He also grabs 3.2 boards per game, and 2.1 steals per game.
Mizzou is a veteran team which will hurt them in the future. However, we are just looking at this season and if they can win the Big 12 (assuming they can beat Kansas) then I think they can get the #1 seed. I just think Kansas is a better team overall, even though their record does not show it. They are both 12-2 in the conference.
#3 Missouri was upset by unranked Kansas State for the second time this season. This will make my blog about Mizzou a little more difficult later on. They lost 78-68. Rodney McGruder dropped 24 points against the Tigers. Michael Dixon was able to put in 21 points off the bench, and star Marcus Denmon added 19 of his own in the losing effort. Ricardo Ratliffe had 14 rebounds but missed the double-double by 1 point.
#8 Georgetown was also upset, but they lost against unranked Seton Hall who they should beat every day. Senior Jordan Theodore scored 29 points for the Pirates. He shot a perfect 5-for-5 from behind the arc. Not one player on the Hoyas scored in double digits in any column (points, assists, rebounds). Seton Hall 61% from the field, 61.5% from 3-point range, and 78.9% from the free throw line. Georgetown only recorded 9 assists as a team.
Newly ranked #21 New Mexico was upset by rival Colorado State 71-63. Key players for the Rams were Pierce Hornung (13 pts, 5 rebs) & Dorian Green (17 pts, 8-8 ft). New Mexico’s Kendall Williams (16 pts) & Demetrius Walker (14 pts) each had good games.
In the Celtics (15-16) last game before the All-Star Break they face off against the Oklahoma City Thunder (25-7) and former teammate Kendrick Perkins. Rajon Rondo will not be able to play against his good friend as he will be serving the second game of his two game suspension for throwing the basketball at the referee. The two teams are heading in different directions as the Celtics have lost 6 of their last 7 and their last 4 in a row. The Thunder have won their last three games and are 9-3 in the month of February. The Celtics are also 4-8 on the road while the Thunder are 13-1 at home.
The Celtics will hopefully get Kevin Garnett back as he has missed the last two games due to a family matter. The Celtics are extremely weak at the power forward position if he doesn’t play as Jermaine O’Neal and Chris Wilcox are both day to day from injuries against the Mavs and Brandon Bass is out until after All Star break. The Celtics will have to rely heavily on Jajuan Johnson and Greg Stiemsma as they are the only two power forwards or centers on the roster.
The Thunder are just two games removed from what I can remember as one of the most ridiculous statlines a trio of NBA players has ever produced
Player
Points
Rebounds
Assists
Blocks
Steals
Kevin Durant
51
8
3
0
4
Russell Westbrook
40
4
9
1
0
Serge Ibaka
14
15
0
11
1
These three bring back memories of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, and Dennis Rodman. While they have accomplished nothing yet, they are look very tough to beat this year and will pose a big problem for the Celtics
Keys to the Game
Get out and Run
The Celtics may or may not have any one of the three big man listed day to day. But if they do, and more importantly if they don’t, they need to get into the open floor and get some easy baskets. The team is struggling in its half court sets and getting easy baskets allows the defense to set up and do its job.
Get some Penetration
Other than Pierce and Ray last game the Celtics were settling for a lot of jumpers. The offense was stagnant and the ball was not moving crisply. It’s tough to get open shots when your not making the defense work.
Cut down on Turnovers
Paul has been trying to take over the game and its nice to see, but his 10 turnovers in the past two games is hard to swallow. The Celtics have to take care of the ball and it starts with The Truth. The Celtics are too good of a defensive team to be giving up so many easy buckets off of turnovers.
Avery Bradley
Finally, my man Avery came out strong in the first quarter last night, looking for his shot and actually hitting it. If he can show he has a consistent jumper, it will open up the floor for the rest of the Celtics shooters and allow him to penetrate and create. No one is really concerned by his defense, we all know Avery D’s up!
Boston Sports Blog 