POST GAME MIN. - AWAY

Smart's 3-pointer comes up short as C's lose to Wolves

CSNNE

JIMMY TUSCANO

The Boston Celtics turned a 10-point deficit with 1:14 remaining in the game into a chance to win at the buzzer, but Marcus Smart's three-pointer came up short as they fell to the Minnesota Timberwolves, 124-122.

Smart received the inbound pass with 5.3 seconds remaining, raced down the court, and shot a contested three-pointer as a wide open Isaiah Thomas called for the ball on the other side of the court.

But the Celtics didn't lose just because of Smart's shot. They put themselves in that position by not playing the type of defense that's won them a chunk of their games this season.

And when the C's did get stops, they allowed second-chance points - 26 of them to be exact - that really hurt them.

The Timberwolves shot 61-percent from the field by halftime, and 56.1-percent by the end of three quarters, holding on to a nine-point lead, 93-84.

They were up 14 points on the Celtics with 3:28 remaining before Boston turned it up on the defensive end and dug into the deficit.

But it wasn't enough. With the loss, the Celtics fell to 1-2 on their three-game road trip.

The Timberwolves led by as many as 16 points in the first quarter before a 17-0 run to end the first quarter and begin the second quarter got the Celtics right back into things.

But the young Timberwolves responded to re-take a healthy lead later in the second quarter, and rookie Karl-Anthony Towns had 20 points at halftime, 15 of which came in the first quarter.

Ricky Rubio, who took just one shot in the first half, was a game-high plus-14 at halftime as the Wolves held onto a six-point lead, 59-53.

The Celtics were led by Jae Crowder who had a career-high 27 points on 9-for-15 shooting. Avery Bradley had 22 points on 9-for-17 shooting and Isaiah Thomas finished with 18 points on 8-for-20 shooting, though he struggled in the first half.

Anthony-Towns scored a game-high 28 points on 13-for-22 shooting and grabbed 13 rebounds. Andrew Wiggins and Gorgui Dieng each had 17 points, Zach LaVine had 16 points, and Ricky Rubio had 15 points.
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STUDS AND DUDS: CELTICS CLAWED BY WOLVES, KARL-ANTHONY TOWNS

WEEI

By Mike Petraglia

The Celtics had their moments Monday night. But not nearly enough to overcome an inconsistent road effort against a young and talented lottery-bound team.

Karl-Anthony Towns, the No. 1 overall pick last June, scored 28 points and hauled in 13 rebounds while Gorgui Gieng hit a key third quarter buzzer-beating 3-pointer as part of a double-double (17 points, 11 rebounds) to lead the Timberwolves past the Celtics, 124-122, Monday night at the Target Center in Minneapolis.

Jae Crowder led Boston with a career-high 27 while Avery Bradley hit for 19 points for the Celtics, who finished 1-2 on their road trip and fell to 33-25.

Marcus Smart, who had an open Isaiah Thomas on his left, had a chance to win it at the buzzer but his contested pull-up three fell short. The Celtics finished the game on a 20-8 run, including an Avery Bradley three with six seconds left that cut the deficit to one, 123-122.

As well as the Celtics started a night earlier in Denver, Boston looked awful in the first 10 minutes of the game. Minnesota (18-39) started out shooting 11-of-14 from the field and out-rebounding the Celtics, 17-7. They built a 31-15 lead.

Towns showed why he’s the franchise player in Minnesota in the opening quarter, scoring 15 points and grabbing seven rebounds. But the Celtics finished the quarter on an 8-0 to cut the deficit to 31-23 heading into the second quarter. Smart provided some key energy off the bench with three steals, including one a clear path with 1.4 seconds left in the quarter that help the Celtics close the gap.

Bradley hit a three and Smart a runner as the Celtics opened the second quarter the way they ended the first, scoring the first nine points for a 17-0 run that gave them their first lead of the game, 32-31. As was the case 24 hours earlier in Denver, Boston’s bench was key, outscoring Minnesota 16-1 to start the game. After Boston took a 37-34 lead, Minnesota responded with an 18-4 run that had them scoring on eight straight possessions.

Thomas missed his first seven shots before drilling a mid-range 15-footer with 1:48 left in the first half. The Celtics ended the first half on a 5-0 run to cut Minnesota’s lead to 59-53 at the break. The Wolves shot an improbable 61 percent on 25-of-41 shooting.

Trailing 81-68 in the third quarter, Jae Crowder converted two consecutive three-point plays, one on a 3-pointer from the left wing and the other, a conventional one to cut the lead to 81-74 with just over three minutes left in the third. Crowder then drilled a straightaway jumper on the next possession. Crowder scored again on Boston’s next possession, part of his 16-point third-quarter that kept Boston close. But a killer 26-foot bank three from Gieng at the third quarter buzzer gave Minnesota a 93-84 lead heading into the fourth.

Another play symbolized Boston’s frustration, trailing 111-100 with just over four minutes left, three Celtics were under the basket after a missed layup from Thomas. After a miss of a put-back by Evan Turner, three Celtics jumped up in the air and knocked the ball to the Wolves, who eventually built their lead back to 14.

Former Celtics big man Kevin Garnett did not play for the Timberwolves due to a sore knee. He’s missed Minnesota’s last 12 games.

After starting the post-All Star break portion of the schedule with three road games, the Celtics return home Thursday night against Milwaukee.

For a complete box score, click here. To go beyond the box, read on.

STUD OF THE NIGHT: Karl-Anthony Towns did everything you would expect from an overall No. 1 NBA draft pick. He carried the Wolves in the opening quarter and the Celtics didn’t have an answer for him all night. Crowder was a runner-up, scoring a career-best 27 points and keeping the Celtics in the game in the third quarter.

DUD OF THE NIGHT: Isaiah Thomas. It had to happen sometime. Thomas started the game missing his first seven attempts from the floor before hitting three in a row. He then missed his next three and could never get into an offensive rhythm all night. He finished 8-of-20 on the night.  

WHINE OF THE NIGHT: Perhaps it was just a simple matter of having back-to-back road games on a Western swing, but the Celtics had little energy in two key areas: rebounding and transition defense. The second-chance scoring and easy baskets were a big reason Minnesota was able to shoot 60 percent from the field through three quarters.

STAT OF THE NIGHT: 124. Boston allowed a season high in points in regulation against the lowly Timberwolves, who shot 51.8 percent for the game, Minnesota also dominated the boards all night, holding a 51-38 edge.  

112288

Too much Towns. He was hitting from everywhere. Sully didn't prevent him from getting into the middle of the paint for a baby hook. Sully had no answer. On the offensive side, Sully worked the boards but had limited effectiveness. Most of his shots were from 19', not 9'.

Overall, they just outworked us. That doesn't usually happen, but it did last night. They were getting to most of the 50/50 balls.

The color guy for Minny is Jim Petersen, the old PF banger for Houston. He drooled over Smart's effort all game. In fact, Smart was the only one really playing hard in the 4th. Turner too, some, but Smart was all out all the time. Where a hustle play by a Wolf inspired his teammates, Smart's hustle didn't.

What is going on with Amir?

Crowder beat the crap out of #1 pick Andrew Wiggins. Great game, both ends, by Crowder.

They shot 52% for the game and 53% from 3. It's hard to win like that, and yet we were a 3pt heave away from doing that. Why? 101 fgas.

On the bright side, a Minny win keeps Brooklyn down where we want them in the Simmons Sweepstakes.


bob

bobheckler wrote:Too much Towns.  He was hitting from everywhere.  Sully didn't prevent him from getting into the middle of the paint for a baby hook.  Sully had no answer.  On the offensive side, Sully worked the boards but had limited effectiveness.  Most of his shots were from 19', not 9'.  

Overall, they just outworked us.  That doesn't usually happen, but it did last night.  They were getting to most of the 50/50 balls.

The color guy for Minny is Jim Petersen, the old PF banger for Houston.  He drooled over Smart's effort all game.  In fact, Smart was the only one really playing hard in the 4th.  Turner too, some, but Smart was all out all the time.  Where a hustle play by a Wolf inspired his teammates, Smart's hustle didn't.

What is going on with Amir?

Crowder beat the crap out of #1 pick Andrew Wiggins.  Great game, both ends, by Crowder.

They shot 52% for the game and 53% from 3.  It's hard to win like that, and yet we were a 3pt heave away from doing that.  Why?  101 fgas.

On the bright side, a Minny win keeps Brooklyn down where we want them in the Simmons Sweepstakes.  


bob

"a Minny win keeps Brooklyn down where we want them in the Simmons Sweepstakes."

Too bad it doesn't look like Phoenix will win another game this season.  They lost to the Clippers last night by a tidy 40 points and have now dropped 12 in a row. For the first couple of months I was convinced the Nets would be no better than the third worst team in the league.  Now it's clear they will be no worse than fourth. And the Lakers have six losses more than BKN so they're not catching them. Looked like they might for awhile.  Minny is only 2 1/2 games ahead of them, but they do have Towns and Wiggins so they should stay there.  There is an 11.9% chance of winning the lottery in the fourth spot.  It would have been 15.6% from the third spot. Tanks a lot Phoenix.

steve3344 wrote:

bobheckler wrote:Too much Towns.  He was hitting from everywhere.  Sully didn't prevent him from getting into the middle of the paint for a baby hook.  Sully had no answer.  On the offensive side, Sully worked the boards but had limited effectiveness.  Most of his shots were from 19', not 9'.  

Overall, they just outworked us.  That doesn't usually happen, but it did last night.  They were getting to most of the 50/50 balls.

The color guy for Minny is Jim Petersen, the old PF banger for Houston.  He drooled over Smart's effort all game.  In fact, Smart was the only one really playing hard in the 4th.  Turner too, some, but Smart was all out all the time.  Where a hustle play by a Wolf inspired his teammates, Smart's hustle didn't.

What is going on with Amir?

Crowder beat the crap out of #1 pick Andrew Wiggins.  Great game, both ends, by Crowder.

They shot 52% for the game and 53% from 3.  It's hard to win like that, and yet we were a 3pt heave away from doing that.  Why?  101 fgas.

On the bright side, a Minny win keeps Brooklyn down where we want them in the Simmons Sweepstakes.  


bob

"a Minny win keeps Brooklyn down where we want them in the Simmons Sweepstakes."

Too bad it doesn't look like Phoenix will win another game this season.  They lost to the Clippers last night by a tidy 40 points and have now dropped 12 in a row. For the first couple of months I was convinced the Nets would be no better than the third worst team in the league.  Now it's clear they will be no worse than fourth. And the Lakers have six losses more than BKN so they're not catching them. Looked like they might for awhile.  Minny is only 2 1/2 games ahead of them, but they do have Towns and Wiggins so they should stay there.  There is an 11.9% chance of winning the lottery in the fourth spot.  It would have been 15.6% from the third spot. Tanks a lot Phoenix.

steve,

Yeah, you're right. And what's more there is no incentive for Brooklyn to lose and there is for Phoenix. Let's hope the pingpong gods smile upon us, for a change.


bob


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