Post-game Thread: Celtics-Bulls in Boston 1/16/15

[Sam]

More of the same.  The Celtics were very competitive, actually leading by three points at the half, before they faded throughout the second half to lose by 16.

This was a classic example of a slow fade.  Look at the cumulative shooting percentages and cumulative number of points at the four quarter check points:

Cumulative shooting percentages:
--------1Q------2Q----3Q-----4Q
Celtics 60%---60%---51%---49%
Bulls- 40%----44%---52%---54%

Cumulative points scored:
--------1Q------2Q----3Q-----4Q
Celtics 24------56-----86-----103
Bulls-- 22------55-----88-----119

These figures show graphically how the Bulls turned the tide in the third quarter and pulled away in the fourth.

The statistics offer some clues as to what went wrong in the third and fourth quarters:

Third quarter: Bulls cut down on their three-point attempts, trying only 2 (making 1) after having tried 14 during the first two quarters
----------------Celts amped up their three-point attempts, trying 7 (making only 2) after having tried only 4 during the first two quarters

----------------Bulls committed 0 turnovers
----------------Celts committed 4 turnovers

----------------Bulls assisted on 60% of their made field goals in the quarter
----------------Celts assisted on 47% of their made field goals in the quarter

In other words, the Bulls became more careful with the ball took better shots and played better team ball in this quarter.

Fourth quarter: Bulls shot 67% in this quarter
------------------Celts shot 40% in this quarter

------------------Bulls shot 78% from three-point land (7-9) in this quarter
------------------Celts shot 20% from three-point land (1-5) in this quarter

------------------Because of their incredible shooting in this quarter, the Bulls needed only 18 shots to outscore the Celtics 31-17.

In other words, the Bulls pretty much freed themselves for good shots and made the shots, while the Celtics had a miserable shooting quarter.

I didn't see the game, so I can only conjecture that the Celtics were particularly derelict in guarding Rose (29 and 10 assists), Gasol (20 and 11 rebounds), Butler (22 an 6 steals), and Brooks (15); so both their interior and perimeter defense stank.  Even E'Twaun Moore (remember him?) was three for four behind the arc.

While the Bulls scored 48 points in the paint to 42 for the Celtics, this was pretty much a jump-shooting contest (obviously won by the Bulls).  And the fact that the Celtics shot only 16 free throws to only 12 for the Bulls during the evening means that the Bulls weren't all that much aggressive in this game.  They just shot the heck out of the ball when it counted; and I have to believe that, once again, the Celtics lost their poise, reverted to playground basketball, and had little-to-no cohesiveness down the stretch.

The only Celtics who shot below 50% for the game were Smart (1-4), and Crowder (33%), but they needed more shot attempts.  Their sloppy ball-handling cost them at least 14 possessions.  And the Bulls' seven threes in the last quarter were like a parade of daggers.

Sully (20 and 8 ), Kelly (14 and 9), Zeller (12 and 6), and Turner (11 and 8 assists) certainly had their moments in this game.  But Turner also had some bad moments, being officially charged with four turnovers on bad passes. I'm sure the game tracker mentioned six bad passes/turnovers committed by Evan.  Suffice it to say, his turnovers gave up a minimum of 8 of the 11 points he scored.

Brandon Bass, who seemed extremely active at both ends, wins my game ball with 16 points on 7-11 hooting and 5 rebounds and a block.

I hope that Jae Crowder has a great defensive night that I couldn't see because he contributed next-to-nothing otherwise (2 points and a steal in 21 minutes).

This team is obviously struggling to develop some cohesiveness; and they continue to have their defense broken down, especially at the end of games.  I'd call their problem "growing pains," but I sensed more pain than growth last night.

Go Celtics!

Sam

[dbrown4]

At least as a team, we are making our gimmies at the free throw line. 14-16 is more than enough. We lost the 3 point barrage war for sure. When your opponent is shooting 13-25 from behind the arc, you aren't going to win many if any games.

70% Assist/FGM. Still looking good. 13 TO's will kill any momentum. It looks like the refs let them play with only 30 total fouls. 12 steals vs our 6? Sloppy offense for sure.

I do like teams that can shoot and make free throws no matter how many times they go to the line. Maybe another glimmer in the works...

db

db

[sinus007]

Hi,
It was a good game. At least better than against Atl, IMO. Celtics were more or less even with Bulls for more than 3 quarters.

AK

[BaronV]

Yup. Fun to watch until halfway through the 4th. As Sam said, way too many careless turnovers, but they stayed in the game. I turned it off with 5 minutes left as they kept just chucking up stupid 3 pointers after letting the Bulls build a bit of a lead.

-V

[k_j_88]

Some notes...


-5-16 (31.3%) from 3.

-Bulls scored 48 points in paint

-13 TOs for C's

-Zeller: 12 PTS, 5-8 FG, 6 REB, only played 19 minutes (WTF?)

-Sullinger: shot 33% from 3

-Kelly had 9 REB

-Bulls shot 52% (13-25) from 3


The defense still continues to be a weak point, both from beyond the arc and the interior. If you can't defend either, you're not going to win many games.


KJ

[cowens/oldschool]

KJ and we were still in the game, if Danny had drafted better and we had a Nurkic or Gobert in the middle and Sully could play against other 4's I wonder how we would look with Green and Rondo and our depth? I think KO is a wasted pick, he has some offensive skills, but his defense is so bad, you can't hide him on the floor. I don't see his offense ever being good enough to offset his non existent defense.

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