Full Court Press: Celtics vs. Pacers 11/23/04
By Mark Rayburn
November 23, 2004
Pacers WIN 106-96
THESE GUYS ARE RIDICULOUS!!! OK, we didn’t hear that gem from Tommy last night, but perhaps we should have. The Celtics out-fouled the Pacers last night by 10. Both Jiri and Mark Blount fouled out of the game. I am pretty sure that on foul #3 or #4 Blount wasn’t in the same area code as the play. At one point in the game I thought Whitey Duvall from 8 Crazy Nights was working the game, with technical fouls being handed out like M&Ms.
But the losscannot be blamed on the zebras alone. The Celtics continue to have problems with making crunch-time defensive stops. Now, I am not advocating a return to Harter-ball but if you want to be a contending team you HAVE to be able to make a defensive stop late in the 4th quarter. And by defensive stop, I don’t mean unintentionally fouling Scot Pollard.
There were, however, some bright spots in this loss. Jiri Welsch started, with Ricky Davis becoming the 6th man. Jiri responded by going 5 of 11 in 31 minutes for 13 points. Ricky brought some solid intensity off the bench (he has the ability & tenacity to be a great 6th man for the Celtics. I never thought I would say that), going 6 of 11 for 15 points in 32 minutes.
Now, for the Pacers side of the tilt. Despite a starting 5 that included 2 guys that could well have been in the Witness Relocation Program before Friday (the Jones boys), the Pacers looked pretty good. Jamaal Tinsley lit up the C’s for 29 points (game high), 6 assists, and 4 steals. He was defensively on Payton like an undershirt, and really impeded GP from getting Pierce the ball cleanly for much of the night. How GP got 8 assists is anyone’s guess.
I was a fan of David Harrison pre-draft, despite some of the knocks on him by the draftniks (mostly about attitude). The kid plays with nice intensity, but looked confused and out of position for much of his 26 minutes. I like the guys we took, at this point. Harrison may turn into a player, but he is probably a longer term project than the C’s can take on now.
Austin Croshere had 14 points by going 2 for 11 from the floor. Let me repeat that: 14 points, 2 for 11. He went 10 for 11 from the line. I know what you’re thinking: how did Croshere go to the line 11 times?? On this issue, your guess is as good as mine. My working theory is that he had a whistle hidden somewhere on his body.
In summary, I like the way that the Celtics played for the most part. If the coaches can find a way to ramp up the defense for the 4th quarter, I think that this Celtics team can really go somewhere. The Ainge draftees all project a team attitude and play their butts off, when given the minutes. For all the negative response Ainge received for his rebuilding (a lot of it by me), this team appears to be headed in the right direction.
I would like to offer best wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving to the entire Celtics organization, and to everyone out there reading this (all 3 of you!).No, seriously thanks. It’s an honor to be able to ramble on about hoop andhave someone actually care.Next up, Sixers and Cavs. Enjoy!
