POST GAME NYK GAME #3

GAME STATS

SCORE – CELTICS - 90 /NYK - 76
REBOUNDS - CELTICS 41 /NYK 37.....Offensive - CELTICS 11 /NYK 6 ......Defensive - CELTICS 30 /NYK 31
POINTS IN THE PAINT - CELTICS 40 /NYK 32
FAST BREAK POINTS - CELTICS 4 / NYK 11
FG - CELTICS - 28/70 (40 %) NYK 38/76 ( 50 % )
3PM - CELTICS - 6/19 ( 31.6 %) NYK 11/27 ( 40.7 %)
FTM - CELTICS - 14/18 (77.8 %) NYK 3/8 (37.5 %)
TO - CELTICS 17 / NYK 11
ASSISTS - CELTICS 14 /NYK 22
STL - CELTICS 6 / NYK 14
BLK - CELTICS 1 / NYK 4
PF - CELTICS 14 / NYK 19
BENCH POINTS - CELTICS 10 / NYK 30
TOTAL TEAM TURNOVERS (Points off turnovers) – CELTICS 18 (26) /NYK 11 (

NEXT GAME SUNDAY - HOME - 1:00PM - NYK - ABC

POST GAME RECAP

ESPNBOSTON.COM

Rapid Reaction: Knicks 90, C's 76 (Game 3)

By Chris Forsberg | ESPNBoston.com

BOSTON -- Rapid reaction after the New York Knicks defeated the Boston Celtics 90-76 during Game 3 of an Eastern Conference first-round series at TD Garden. Knicks lead the series, 3-0.

THE NITTY GRITTY
Go ahead and pick your favorite adjective: Pathetic, unsightly, embarrassing? They all work to describe Boston's effort in this one. A so-called "desperate" Celtics team, its season hanging in the balance, shot 35 percent (14 of 40 overall) while mustering a measly 31 first-half points, barely an upgrade over its 49 points worth of total second-half output in the first two games of the series. Jeff Green scored a team-high 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting with nine rebounds, while Kevin Garnett added 12 points and 17 rebounds. Paul Pierce labored through 6-of-15 shooting with five turnovers (Green had the same number of giveaways) for 17 points over 41 minutes. Not even a new-look starting unit with Jason Terry (14 points) was able to wake Boston from its postseason slumber. Carmelo Anthony scored a game-high 26 points on 12-of-25 shooting while Raymond Felton continued to toy with Boston, putting up 15 points and 10 assists. JR Smith added 15 points before getting ejected in the fourth quarter (more on that below).

TURNING POINT
It was a one-possession game early in the second quarter before the Knicks embarked on an 8-0 run highlighted by 3-pointers from Pablo Prigioni and Smith (with a Kenyon Martin layup in between). Later in the frame, with Boston's offense sputtering, the Knicks put together an 11-0 burst that featured three straight buckets from Anthony before a Felton 3-pointer pushed the lead to 18 (47-29) with under a minute to play in the half. Boston was booed as it left the court at the intermission.

SMITH EJECTED FOR FLAGRANT-2
Smith floored Terry with an elbow with 7:06 to play in the fourth quarter and was ejected after the foul was classified a flagrant-2. Celtics coach Doc Rivers prevented a potential confrontation, stepping in front of an enraged Terry and bearhugging him as Smith walked away. With the game out of reach, the refs made the easy decision to maintain the flagrant-2 classification (which comes with automatic ejection). At least Game 4 will have one intriguing storyline.

LITTLE VICTORIES
Some of the only cheers from Celtics fans in the second half came when a trio of Knicks fans were booted from the arena early in the fourth quarter. One New York fan in an Anthony jersey blew kisses to the Boston fans applauding his departure. You can do that when you're team is up 20 points and about to put a stranglehold on the series.

WHAT IT MEANS
Unless the Celtics plan on making some history (someone get Kevin Millar on the phone!), this series is over as early as Sunday's Game 4 at the Garden (and probably no later than Tuesday's Game 5 in New York if Boston somehow musters the pride to keep its season going). Friday was just an embarrassing effort for a team that pledged to show signs of desperation after two uninspired second-half efforts in New York. Playing their first game at TD Garden in 16 days and in the aftermath of the marathon bombings, the Celtics rarely showed any fight -- something that's dogged them this entire series when adversity bubbles up. There's at least 48 minutes of basketball left in the season, but it's likely the offseason chatter will start to dominate the conversation after a disappointing, injury-plagued 2012-13 season sits on the brink.
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CSNE

A. SHERROD BLAKLEY

Knicks push Celtics to edge, 90-76


BOSTON — The scene could not have been any more picturesque for a Boston Celtics win than it was Friday night.

Down 2-0 in their best-of-seven series with the New York Knicks, the C's were in an absolute must-win game for them to have any realistic shot at staying alive in this series.

They were surrounded by a full house of fans who all in some way are still healing from the mental if not physical scars left behind from the Boston Marathon Bombings on April 15.

So many of those who went above and beyond during this city's time of need were on hand, such as Boston Police officers, individuals who treated the injured in addition to Gov. Deval L. Patrick, were in attendance.

A common theme throughout the night was, Boston Strong.

You could see those words on white t-shirts, green t-shirts. Black ones, too.

While it may have been the theme of the night, it certainly wasn't an apt description for the Boston Celtics' play which once again wasn't good enough to win.

And now the Celtics find themselves on the brink of playoff elimination following a 90-76 Game 3 loss on Friday.

The only time Boston seemed to play with a little fire was the first minute or so after New York's J.R. Smith hit Jason Terry with an elbow that resulted in him being whistled for a Flagrant-2 foul which is an automatic ejection.

But within minutes, whatever momentum the C's were feeling had been washed away as Tyson Chandler caught a lob dunk on one end of the floor, and drew an offensive foul against Jordan Crawford at the other.

Boston now trails 3-0 in the best-of-seven series, with the Knicks in position to eliminate the C's in Game 4 on Sunday.

On a night that began with so much promise, a night when true "Heroes Among us" were indeed throughout the arena, it ended with the C's on the verge of having their season end sooner than it has ever since Kevin Garnett arrived in town prior to the 2008 NBA title run.

There was no mistaking the ridiculously high energy in the building was fueling the C's early on to the point where they appeared almost too amped for the occasion.

After winning the opening tip, Boston had not one, not two, but three point-blank shots around the basket that failed to go in.

That wasn't the only issue that the Celtics had in the game's early going.

C's coach Doc Rivers decided to make a lineup change, inserting a struggling Jason Terry into the starting lineup while sending Brandon Bass - their best rebounder and arguably their most consistent frontcourt player in this series - to the bench.

Like most of Rivers' decisions in this series, it didn't work.

The impact of the switch was evident in the Knicks having a 7-2 advantage in second-chance points (the kind of stuff that having Bass on the floor might have limited to eliminated altogether) and the man that Terry was assigned to, Pablo Prigioni hitting a pair of 3s in the first quarter.

It put the Celtics in a 23-18 hole after one quarter of play, a hole that only got deeper in the second quarter as the Knicks continued to pull away in a surprisingly dominant fashion.

And the success by New York was fueled by a comedy of errors for the Celtics.

If it wasn't Avery Bradley throwing a simple bounce pass into the post too hard to be handled, it was Paul Pierce losing control of the ball without any pressure from the defense.

Meanwhile, the Knicks simply continued to move the ball on offense with eight different scorers in the first half, while the Celtics continued to look like an old and feeble team whose battle-tested leaders simply had little left to lead the troops to victory and the team's next wave of talent unable to take the reigns.

Boston trailed 47-31 at the half and as bad as that was, there was a sense that the Knicks had it in them to make the game even more lopsided in the second half.

But as we had seen in the first two games, the team leading at the half - Boston in Games 1 and 2 - sputtered out the gates in the third and was just flat-lined in the fourth.

That would not be the case on Friday as the Celtics spent the first six minutes of the third quarter unable to make up much ground.

Trailing 49-38, the Celtics forced a turnover and were in transition which has been their best offense in this series.

Before Jason Terry could find a teammate to pass to, he was stripped by Pablo Prigioni.

New York went on a 7-2 run to push their lead back to 16 points - the same margin they had at the half.

Boston's toughest enemy for most of the first three quarters was themselves, with 13 turnovers resulting in 22 points for the Knicks ... and that was with 2:21 to play in the third quarter.

Meanwhile, New York had just seven turnovers at that point in the game that generated a pitiful three points for the Celtics.

Trailing 63-46 at the time, the C's had the look of a team that was simply shell-shocked by a New York Knicks team that had been tougher mentally and physically the entire series.

Not even Knicks guard Raymond Felton telling reporters before the game that he could, "get to the basket at any time, any point in the game" seemed to do much to fire up the Celtics players when told before the game about Felton's comments.

"We're going to do what we have to do, come up with a new game plan for him," C's forward Jeff Green said prior to tip-off.

Here's Avery Bradley's take on Felton's comments: "Everybody's going to have confidence in themselves. I can't knock him for that, but I have confidence in myself at the same time. You just take it as a challenge."

But for most of the game, Felton simply took it to the Celtics and because of that, the C's are on the verge of being totally taken off the NBA playoff landscape by way of a sweep.
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WEEI 93.7 FM

Ben Rohrbach

FAST BREAK: KNICKS BLOWOUT LEAVES CELTICS STAGGERING

The Celtics submitted another miserable offensive effort, shooting worse than 40 percent from the field, and fell into a 3-0 hole against the Knicks with a 90-76 loss in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series. Kevin Garnett totaled 12 points and 17 rebounds, Jeff Green gave them 21 points and eight boards, and Jason Terry and Paul Pierce combined to score 24 of their 31 points in the second half, but none of it mattered in a game the Knicks led by as many as 21 points. Here’s all that went awry.

WHAT WENT WRONG

Everything: When 31 points in the first half is an improvement from their last half of basketball, the Celtics are in trouble. After scoring 23 points in the second half of Game 2, the C’s managed just 31 points in the first two quarters on Friday night. They shot 35 percent from the field (14-40) and committed three more turnovers (9) than they had assists (6) at the break. Outside of Garnett and Green, who combined to score 17 of those 31 points, the Celtics shot 6-of-22 (27 FG%) thanks to an offense that featured a string of failed turnaround jump shots.

Lineups: To the surprise of pretty much everyone, Doc Rivers inserted Terry into the starting lineup in place of Brandon Bass. The move failed miserably, as the Celtics found themselves in a 16-9 hole when Rivers replaced Terry with Courtney Lee with 4:20 left in the opening quarter. This after the Celtics coach benched Lee in favor of Jordan Crawford in Game 2. At one point in the second quarter — as Garnett, Chris Wilcox and Shavlik Randolph sat on the bench — Green guarded 7-foot-1 Tyson Chandler. Odd moves all.

Pierce: After carrying the load in Games 1 and 2, Pierce looked cooked. He shot 2-of-10 in the miserable first half, committing three turnovers in that span and bumbling another handful of balls. And then started the third quarter by throwing the ball to Raymond Felton. The Celtics looked old, tired and slow, and Pierce epitomized all of it. He battled, as he always does, but his tank was running on empty.

WHAT WENT RIGHT

Garnett: As usual, Garnett came out like a wild man, nearly notching his double-double by halftime. Why the Celtics didn’t feed him more was a mystery. KG played his manic defense, too, neutralizing Chandler and Kenyon Martin. Meanwhile, Carmelo Anthony (26 points), J.R. Smith (15 points before being ejected in the fourth quarter) and Felton (15 points) continued to force their will upon the rest of the C’s. It wasn’t for lack of effort. Garnett gave them that. The Celtics just didn’t have the personnel to match the Knicks.

Green: While everything crumbled around him, Green gave the Celtics everything they had hoped for all season. He attacked the basket and cleaned the glass, making an impact in the flow of the game while playing the majority of his minutes alongside both Pierce and Garnett. Green was supposed to be the X-factor in this series, but instead he’s been one of the only factors. Exhibit 326: Smith has outscored the entire Celtics bench 49-33 in the series.

Rebounding: At least the Celtics did something well. Pierce and Bass aided Garnett and Green on the glass, each grabbing at least four boards by halftime. The C’s out-rebounded the Knicks 41-37 for the game and here’s the real shocker: They even grabbed more offensive boards than New York (11-6). Of course, their inability to make baskets gave them plenty of opportunities for offensive rebounds.

112288

DISMANTLE IT NOW DANNY!

STOP SERVING UP HALF BAKED TEAMS AND TRY TO PEDDLE IT TO BOSTON FANS AS "I LIKE OUR CHANCES"!

That is why I would rather of us miss the playoffs then to get blitzed by these ass holes from NY. I saw it coming. NY will be a one and done team......all they can do is hit jumpers...they have no interior game.

Rest of the way....I'll root for Chicago and Tommy T.!

112288

I think hes gotta do it, will be lean years, but we gotta do it, we can't even crack 80 points.

Sometimes you eat the bear, sometimes the bear eats you. The bear got to this bunch.

We'll see what can be built around Rondo. We better start thinking now about what it will cost to extend Rondo into the next deal, so we know what we can work with down the road as we shed other big contracts.

Paul Pierce is one of the all time great Celtics, but if he keeps him next year and chokes us with his salary preventing us from getting an impact player who is young...................

The joke is on us Celtic fans............I've put the sentimentality stuff way behind me years ago when watching the team die when Bird and McHale started getting old. We had our fun in the sun.........time to grow and create new legends in Celtic green!

112288

NY

Good thought. Start the rebuild and secure Rondo for another 3-4 years. Rondo would want that as well as he is coming back from knee surgery and wants some additional security. If he cannot play...Celtics can still use amnesty clause as insurance protection.

112288

When The Celtics started out missing their first 4 shots including 2 layups by KG and 1 by Pierce and an open 3 from the corner by Bradley, I thought here we go.

I am not really surprised at what I am seeing.

PP looks like someone locked in a poorly lit basement...fumbling around trying to find his way out. KG gets few face the basket jumpers. Avery has worn down and is totally incapable of running an offense. Virtually no big minutes off the bench as Randolph and Wilcox were dormant again. Another change to the starting lineup with Terry at the off guard.

This team is totally dysfunctional.

Last night as I was thinking about the meaning of being a Boston Celtics fan I came to the conclusion that everyone should be able to relate to...When they win I feel fantastic and when they loose it's depressing.

dboss

In her latest column, ESPN Boston’s Jackie MacMullan reminds us that Garnett is battling bone spurs. And she uses an adjective that strikes fear in my heart – painful.

KG, the centerpiece of the team’s defensive soul, is battling a minor hip injury and painful bone spurs that appear to float between his foot and ankle. Team sources confirmed Thursday they remain a hindrance to Garnett.

112288

112288 - I'm in agreement with you that it's time for Paul to go. As much as I've appreciated him over the years, his value to the team is more in his departing than staying. KG however is STILL a valuable player and at least for the next two years he'd be much better than whomever we could replace him with the added cap space.

Last night's game confirmed to me that other than Rondo we have no playmakers on the team. Which is one big reason why Rajon probably doesn't mimic Cooz and make the pass that leads to the pass that creates the basket. To whom is Rondo going to pass who in turn will find an open man? We need more playmakers and great passers on this team.

Danny, get to work!

Hindrance or not, KG is still playing good basketball. He and Jeff Green are the real contributors out there.

Worcester,

I agree with you as well. KG would be a great off the bench mix and match player....sometimes center....sometimes power forward. If he could give 5 minutes of quality time on the court a quarter, he would be great. Match him with a physical center like Andray Blatche, Samuel Dalembert and throw in Sully, you got some players that can really clean the paint.

We need to let Jeff Green become our everyday small forward and Paul....retire his number and move on. Being sentimental is behind me, when Bird, McHale and Parrish got old and we got our heads kicked in by the rest of the league. Same thing happened to the great NY Islanders who did not trade their aging stars for new kids after they lost in the finals after winning 4 straight Stanley Cups. They never were the same since! That is why we went 22 years without a championship in Boston magnified by that idiot Rick Patino who I will never forgive. The only reason he came to Boston was that he thought he was getting Tim Dunkin in the draft. After that he had no idea how to rebuild the Celtics.

We also need a sniper....Kover on Atlanta would be the guy I would aim for.

112288

112288,

The only reason why Pitino came to to the Celtics, to quote Mike Lynch from Ch 5, was to "line his pockets" And to quote me, was to take his "Napoleon Syndrome" to the big time.

I will stop here before I can't!

Pete

Pete,

Also he thought he would land Dunkin so he would become a living legend in Boston....that egotistical bastard! I hate that guys guts!


112288

He was a total disaster, he got rid of 9 players, Rick Fox and Sherman Douglas were two that come to mind, to clear the roster for Travis Knight! And remember he said that Dwayne Schintzius was "gonna be a player" (when I googled his name to get the correct spelling, I didn't realize he died last year)

Pitino could not judge talent at this level, nor coach.

I guess looking back makes me feel better about where we are at this point. Game 3 was tough to watch, but then again 2008 was an incredible turn around that I will never forget, and to this day, I am still amazed we won that year. It took me a month or so to really believe they did it. We almost did it again 2 yrs later if not for the Perk injury. How many teams have had this chance in the last 30 yrs?

After watching the Bird years come to an end, I am not shocked to see this team decline, even though I didn't expect it so quickly this year, every team goes through it.

I am not on the get rid of Danny bandwagon, and still have hope that he can rebuild again. Lets face it, some of the best in the business have failed to accomplish what he was able to do, so I will be patient and hopeful.

Pete

Pete,

i do get on Danny but I also think he is not afraid to think out of the box and do a controversial trade. he may be hampered by management but I think management heard it loud and clear Friday as the building was half empty by the 3rd quarter and the booo's were loud........believe me everyone got the message.

they are smart and also proud owners...they will right the ship...I just hope it is next year....not 2 years from now.

112288

112288,

I'd be happy if it wasn't 22 years from now!

The good news is that he did setup all those expiring contracts which have been renewed(help gyso) that help us to be more flexible than we have been in the past (do you miss Pervis Ellison and Vin Baker?) remember, Danny inherited a lot of this from the aforementioned coach and GM, so it shouldn't take as long this time. In addition, he made a few blunders himself that he learned from.( ie: the trade for Antoine, although maybe it did work out in the long run) If you compare the contracts we have now, to those back then, it looks a lot better!

Peter,

Right on....It will be a good summer for Boston Celtics fans as we retool, Wyc is no fool........they will not let the building go empty if a poor team. Glad you checked in and posted.......I have missed your threads...keep it coming!

112288

Pete and112288... 100% agree on the Shitino disasters and the likelihood we'll rebuild quickly.

Worcester,

There is just so much time being fat and silly....time to get back to work Danny!

Danny may be just lying in the weeds and then he'll come up with a block buster deal. I think at this point anyone is open to a trade. Pressure is also on management to retain the Celtics current value - $750M. They are not going to let it slip due to a bad team......besides the economy is starting to rebound so maybe the wallet opens up a little bit wider.

112288

$750M...Walter Brown and Red must be rolling their eyes in heaven.

J.R. Smith suspended for game 4:

http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/knicks/knicks_smith_suspended_for_terry_1culvXCjCYPKFMEEIKcVJN

The Celtics have a great opportunity to achieve a stay of execution with a win today against the Knicks.

With JR out due to the suspension, we really only have to manage Melo's offense.

At this point the Celtics need to play loose. Just go out there and have some fun. Run the court, hit the floor, fight all the way and get a win in this series.

We have the entire summer to prognosticate about the team so lets enjoy what remains even if it could be the last game of the 20012-2013 season.

Go Celtics!

dboss