POST GAME TORONTO

GAME STATS

Rebounds - Celtics 41 /TOR 43........ Offensive - Celtics 6 /TOR 12 ........Defensive - Celtics 35 /TOR 31
Points In The Paint - Celtics 36 /TOR 44
Fast Break Points - Celtics 10 / TOR 18
FG - Celtics - 35/73 (47.9 %) TOR 34/82 (41.5 %)
3PM - Celtics 4/19 (21.1 %) TOR 4/18 (22.2 %)
FTM - Celtics 25/30 (83.3 %) TOR 23/26 (88.5 %)
TO - Celtics 13 / TOR 15
Assists - Celtics 21 / TOR 18
STL - Celtics 4 / TOR 12
BLK - Celtics 5 / TOR 2
PF - Celtics 20 / TOR 23
Bench Points - Celtics 24 / TOR 20
Total Team Turnovers (Points off turnovers) – Boston 14 (28) /TOR 15 (11)

NEXT GAME TOMORROW - THURSDAY - HOME - 8:00PM - LAL - CSNE/TNT


POST GAME RECAP


ESPNBOSTON.COM

Rapid Reaction: Celtics 99, Raptors 95

By Chris Forsberg | ESPNBoston.com

THE NITTY GRITTY
Kevin Garnett scored a season-high 27 points on 11-of-18 shooting to go along with 10 rebounds as the Celtics rallied from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to win its fifth straight. All five Boston starters landed in double figures, including 15 points for an aggressive Courtney Lee on 6-of-11 shooting. Leandro Barbosa added 14 points and provided a key spark off the bench, while Paul Pierce labored with his shot (2 of 11), but finished with 12 points, a team-high 11 rebounds, and 6 assists over a team-high 37 minutes. Newly acquired Rudy Gay scored a team-high 25 points (on 8-of-24 shooting) to pace the Raptors, while Amir Johnson finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds.

TURNING POINT I: C'S UNRAVEL IN THIRD
The Celtics were up five coming out of halftime, but unraveled late in the third quarter and the Raptors opened a double-digit lead while scoring 34 points in the frame. Boston made it easy on Toronto, shooting a mere 35.3 percent in the frame (6 of 17 overall) and turning the ball over five times leading to a whopping 13 points. No giveaway was more exasperating than, after Gay hit a 3-pointer, no one stayed to receive the inbounds pass from Jason Terry, who threw the ball away, leading to a DeMar DeRozan layup and a 79-69 advantage for the Raptors.

TURNING POINT II: BOSTON PICKS ITSELF BACK UP IN FOURTH
Facing maybe its biggest adversity since Rajon Rondo was lost for the season -- down double digits on the road while falling apart at the seams -- Boston managed to regroup itself heading to the final frame. The Celtics opened the quarter on a 10-0 run to erase their deficit, culminating with Garnett's magical no-look, over-the-head, and-one bucket that helped even the game at 79 with 8:43 to go.

TURNING POINT III: GAME OVER
Barbosa hit a number of big shots in a bit of a back-and-forth battle in the fourth frame, but it was Garnett who kept providing the key buckets to keep the Raptors at arm's length. A 12-foot fadeaway with 46 seconds to go in a one-possession game proved pivotal to helping Boston emerge with the win.

TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES
Celtics coach Doc Rivers picked up his third technical foul of the season for barking at an official late in the first half. It was Rivers' third tech of the season (and first in nearly a month of play).

WHAT IT MEANS
The Celtics have won five straight, but this was the first on the road and this team showed a lot of resolve finding a way to rally out of the 10-point hole when the game certainly looked like it was getting away from them. Boston picked up its defense when it needed to, limiting Toronto to 16 points in the final frame. With the Lakers already in Boston and resting up for Thursday's national TV showdown, the Celtics pick up a win to keep their momentum rolling.
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CSNE

Garnett carries Celtics to 99-95 win over Raptors

A. SHERROD BLAKLEY

TORONTO — You don't build up the kind of Hall of Fame credentials that Kevin Garnett has without dominating a game or two along the way.

Even at 36, KG still has it in him to be the best player on the floor -- even if he's the oldest.

The Toronto Raptors found that out on Wednesday night as Garnett carried the Celtics to a 99-95 win.

It was his 12-foot fadeaway jumper with less than a minute to play that put the Celtics ahead 96-91 in what eventually turned out to be the game-winning basket.

But the Raptors weren't done.

After cutting Boston's lead to three points, Toronto forced Paul Pierce into a tough off-balance shot that rimmed out. In the scramble for the rebound, it eventually sailed out of bounds off of Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan with 18 seconds to play.

From there, Toronto intentionally fouled Jeff Green who made the second free throw with 17.6 seconds to play that gave the C's a 97-93 lead.

Rudy Gay had two shots around the basket -- both misses -- with the loose ball eventually being rebounded by Courtney Lee who was immediately fouled with 9.8 seconds to play.

Lee made both free throws to finally put the game away.

Boston (25-23) has now five straight, with Wednesday's victory being their first away from the TD Garden.

Garnett was indeed the one that led the way, but not too far behind him was Leandro Barbosa who had 14 points, 12 of which came in the fourth quarter.

After falling behind by 10 points going into the fourth, the Celtics opened the quarter with a 7-0 spurt capped off by a 12-foot pull-up jumper by Jason Terry off a Jeff Green steal.

Toronto called a time-out, well aware that they were looking at yet another second-half collapse, which has been one of the constants with their team all season.

"We have to get better at finishing games off," Toronto big man Amir Johnson said prior to the game.

Toronto had a stretch earlier this year in which they led at the half in nine straight games, but came away losers six times.

Wednesday had the makings of another late-game collapse for the Raptors, and an impressive comeback for the Celtics.

An improbable over the shoulder shot by Garnett plus the free throw, tied the game at 79.

But the Raptors were not willing to concede this one, as they continued to make the most of Boston's mistakes.

After a lay-up by Kyle Lowry off a bad pass by Boston put the Raptors ahead 83-81, it was the Raptor's 26th point off of 13 Celtics turnovers.

After seemingly righting their ways in the second quarter, they reverted back to committing the many miscues that had them in a back-and-fourth tussle with the Raptors earlier in the game.

Specifically, their turnovers.

It wasn't so much that the Celtics had that many.

It's just that when they made a mistake, the Raptors quickly capitalized on it with points of their own.

And making matters worst, Garnett picked up his fourth personal foul with 6:48 to play in the third quarter which immediately sent him to the bench.

Garnett on the sideline is never a good look for the Celtics, especially on a night like Wednesday when he was scoring the ball with such ease.

While his departure was relatively close to when he usually sits, his absence and the absence of anyone filling his void, was apparent.

Within a couple of minutes, Boston saw itself looking up to a 69-65 deficit following a dunk by Andrea Bargnani.

But the Celtics dealt with that adversity in the same manner they have done of late -- deal with it, and after that, get the win.
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WEEI 93.7 FM


KEVIN GARNETT POWERS THE CELTICS PAST THE RAPTORS

By Mike Petraglia

Kevin Garnett led all five Celtics starters in double-figure scoring with a season-high 27 points and powered a key run at the start of the fourth quarter as the Celtics outlasted the Raptors, 99-93, Wednesday night at Air Canada Centre in Toronto. His turnaround jumper with 46.6 seconds left put Boston up, 96-91.

Garnett's three-point play with 8:46 remaining capped a 10-0 run at the start of the final period as the Celtics overcame a sloppy third quarter to win their fifth straight game and improve to 25-23 on the season. Garnett added 10 rebounds in the win.

Paul Pierce added 12 points and 11 rebounds while former Raptor Leandro Barbosa went back to Toronto and chipped in 14 points off the Boston bench.

Rudy Gay had 25 points on 8-of-22 shooting to lead the Raptors, who appeared ready to steal the game with a 17-4 run late in the third quarter. The Raptors outscored the Celtics, 34-19, to take a 79-69 lead heading into the final quarter. The Raptors had five of their 11 steals in the quarter as Toronto took command.

But Garnett led a Celtics charge that saw Boston outscore Toronto, 30-16, in the final 12 minutes to wrap up a fifth straight win.

The Celtics will have little time to rest as they fly back to Boston and take on Kobe Bryant and the Lakers Thursday at 8 p.m. at TD Garden. The Lakers will not have the services of Pau Gasol, as the Lakers big man was diagnosed with a torn plantar facitis.

112288

5 in a row............great comeback road win. If the Celtics keep the wins going they are going to become dangerous............They'll start believing.....anything is possible!

Just want to say to all members up in New England....BE CAREFUL.....This sounds like the the Blizzard of 1978 all over again.

Get the fireplace going...get the hot coco with whipped cream on top and sit back and watch the snow.........better yet skip the coco and bring me some warm Brandy!

112288

112288 wrote:5 in a row............great comeback road win. If the Celtics keep the wins going they are going to become dangerous............They'll start believing.....anything is possible!

Just want to say to all members up in New England....BE CAREFUL.....This sounds like the the Blizzard of 1978 all over again.

Get the fireplace going...get the hot coco with whipped cream on top and sit back and watch the snow.........better yet skip the coco and bring me some warm Brandy!

112288

man i hope it aint the blizzard of 78 all over again, my mother walked 5 blocks to meet a national guard jeep that then drove her to the hospital so she coudl give birth to her 4th child. that was a rough one, i was 4 and can remember it.

Matty, That's what they are saying...24" ++++ from RI, Ma, Maine.

God I wounder what route 128 will look like in Glouster?

112288

Well, it just looks like the snow Gods are going to make New Englander's pay for all the warm weather they gave us last year and part of this year. It is going to be a tough one, but we are closer and closer to the warm weather so it won't be hanging around for months and months. Before we know it it will be spring.

Oh well, what is the old saying about New England? Just close your eyes and blink and the weather changes.

Rosalie

We must be good if we can sleep-walk through 3 quarters, be down by 10 after 3 and still beat these guys on the road. Now that we've proven we can do it, let's not do it again.

No energy, no rhythm, no focus. Lazy pass after lazy pass after lazy pass. I would have hated to have been the stat man trying to figure out when he should have charged the Celtics with a turnover or given the Raptors credit for a steal. I mean, when a Celtic practically walks up to a Raptor and hands them the ball, which is it? Celtics were making these ridiculously easy, soft passes that I could have intercepted, and I'm an old man. Some players were focused, but not most.

1. KG was focused. This game was a throwback. 27 points and 10 rebounds. He not only outplayed Aaron Gray and Andrea Bargnani put together, he almost doubled them. Even he, though, made some dumb, lazy passes and boneheaded fouls. Overall, though, this was an amazing game for KG. I hope it carries over to tonight.

2. The Celtics wake-up call went off with the beginning of the 4th quarter and it was Barbosa who wouldn't let the Celtics hit the snooze button. As was stated above, 12 of his 14 points came in the 4th quarter. When you consider Toronto only scored 16 point in the 4th quarter total, you realize what kind of a contribution that is. He also had 4 assists. More importantly, though, his energy was contagious. Just as Bradley's energy on defense elevates his team's defensive intensity, Barbosa's offensive energy lifted the Celtics last night. Damn, he is quick. We finally have our own Microwave.

3. Courtney Lee played a great all-round game, both ends. He was guarding Rudy Gay a lot, including on the last drive that Gay missed and Lee got the rebound and got fouled. We were all wondering what the hell Doc saw in him and now we're seeing it. He is finally hitting his stride. He draws tough defensive assignments every night and still chips in some points. I love that his first inclination is to look to penetrate and finish.


Here comes the 2nd half of a back-to-back, while the Lakers got to rest a day. We caught a break with Gasol being out. We better not go down 10 after 3 to Kobe, though.


bob


.

BobH,

One thing about this game mystified me. I counted a minimum of four times when a Raptor player drove to within three or four feet of the rim and had a clear opening to continue taking it to the hoop without any barrier but, instead, passed it out to a teammate. Perhaps they were all designed plays, but I can't believe being so slavish to a designed play that they'd pass up a sure basket just to adhere to the play.

Sam

sam wrote:BobH,

One thing about this game mystified me. I counted a minimum of four times when a Raptor player drove to within three or four feet of the rim and had a clear opening to continue taking it to the hoop without any barrier but, instead, passed it out to a teammate. Perhaps they were all designed plays, but I can't believe being so slavish to a designed play that they'd pass up a sure basket just to adhere to the play.

Sam

sam,

The Raptors weren't a good team before, and now they just a major personnel change with a new "go to" guy. Talk about chemistry problems! We caught them at a good time in their schedule. I wouldn't want to see them in April, after they had some time to work through this and get to know each other.

bob

.

bobheckler wrote:The Raptors weren't a good team before, and now they just a major personnel change with a new "go to" guy. Talk about chemistry problems! We caught them at a good time in their schedule. I wouldn't want to see them in April, after they had some time to work through this and get to know each other.

I didn't see the game last night, but do you really think the Raptors will actually become decent? Gay, DeRozan, and Lowry can play and Amir Johnson and Landry Fields are serviceable role players, but what else do they have? Terrence Ross is a rookie who may be a player someday, Kleiza is always hurt, Pietrus's knee issues have gotten worse, Bargnani sucks the life out of the offense and is a piece of tissue paper on defense, and Valanciunas is their splashy Euro signing who can't even displace Aaron Gray (3.4 points, 3.4 rebounds) as the center. They have four wins all season over teams currently in playoff position.

They still look like the Raptors to me.

Sam. all looking for the big kill with a three pointer. Seems that teams are relying on that shot as the dagger this year. I wonder what the shooting percentages are this year as opposed to other years. They certainly can't be hitting 50 % of their three pointers.

Outside wrote:

bobheckler wrote:The Raptors weren't a good team before, and now they just a major personnel change with a new "go to" guy. Talk about chemistry problems! We caught them at a good time in their schedule. I wouldn't want to see them in April, after they had some time to work through this and get to know each other.

I didn't see the game last night, but do you really think the Raptors will actually become decent? Gay, DeRozan, and Lowry can play and Amir Johnson and Landry Fields are serviceable role players, but what else do they have? Terrence Ross is a rookie who may be a player someday, Kleiza is always hurt, Pietrus's knee issues have gotten worse, Bargnani sucks the life out of the offense and is a piece of tissue paper on defense, and Valanciunas is their splashy Euro signing who can't even displace Aaron Gray (3.4 points, 3.4 rebounds) as the center. They have four wins all season over teams currently in playoff position.

They still look like the Raptors to me.

outside,

Do I think they will contend for a title in the foreseeable future? I see them in the playoffs in a year or two (which is more than they have been able to claim), but I see a lot of offense there. Gay and DeRozan, a scorer and feeder Lowry, Bargnani coming off the bench for scoring. Ross is a rookie and isn't going anywhere for a year or two. Le Peche is a goner. Valanciunas is another project, probably just a little ahead of Melo. Landry Fields can be more than a serviceable role player, he could be a helluva 6th man. He can shoot and he can defend. The addition of Gay gives them nice young depth at 3. He did not play last night.

Bargnani both sucks the air out of an offense as well as fuels it. He is another Euro stretch 4 a la Dirk. Before, he was their starting center and that was a non-starter. Personally, I hate stretch 4s. I see the expression "stretch 4" as a de facto admission that they are allergic to paint but that's the NBA now. Everybody wants to be a gunner and nobody wants the contact (notable exceptions are Sullinger, Faried, Carl Landry). As a starter, his inability to execute the fundamentals of defense made him a liability. As a big coming off the bench, perhaps he has more value. Amir Johnson is an athletic worker bee who could be another Dale Davis. Not flashy, isn't a go to guy, but is long and guards the paint and will put a body on people.

Gray and Valanciunas are marginal centers, to say the least. Efforts to bolster that position (drafting Valanciunas, for example) hasn't panned out, but marginal upgrades might make them bearable, especially given the explosiveness of their swingmen.

A lot of their problems are the 4" muscle between the ears (I'm thinking about DeRozan, in particular, here). They fold like a house of cards in 4th quarters. I don't know if Rudy Gay will change that, he'll probably need another playoff veteran added to that roster to generate the necessary momentum and grit, but that has got to be giving Casey ulcers. What can he say besides "Which part of "execute" don't you understand?".


bob


.

bobheckler wrote:A lot of their problems are the 4" muscle between the ears (I'm thinking about DeRozan, in particular, here). They fold like a house of cards in 4th quarters. I don't know if Rudy Gay will change that, he'll probably need another playoff veteran added to that roster to generate the necessary momentum and grit, but that has got to be giving Casey ulcers. What can he say besides "Which part of "execute" don't you understand?".

That reminds me of the classic John McKay quote. When asked what he thought of his team's execution, he said, "I'm in favor of it."

Gyso,

I am looking Allen's Coffee Flavored Brandy up. I wonder if they ship?

It may be an historic Blizzard for most of Boston NH and Maine. I kind of love how weather can generate so much power.

112288