Presto! Celtics Keep On Winning, Work Magic Against Orlando: 97-84

Boy, I tell ya...if any more Celtics get hurt, they're liable to win the Championship!

By now, only the Celtics fans living under a satellite-jamming rock haven't heard that not only has the team lost the All-Star stylings of Rajon Rondo due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament, but they are now without the services of rookie extraordinaire Jared Sullinger thanks to a herniated disk that required surgery.

These season-ending injuries to key players have been accepted as devastating news by fan, foe and talking head alike, but all the Celtics have done is turn, smile at the cameras and politely flash the middle finger at the pundits who all-but-buried-them as they just keep on winning.

Tonight, against a Magic team facing their own injury problems (Glen "Big Baby" Davis recently broke his foot) the Celtics continued their newfangled brand of Big Love basketball, beating on Orlando from the 2nd quarter forward (when Kevin Garnett did his best impression of a house doused in gasoline catching fire) in another game that featured multiple scorers sharing equal time with a plethora of distributors. Sure, the Magic at one point did get the score down to three, but when you out-assist your opponent (a whopping 30 to 19), out-rebound your opponent (48-47), and outshoot your opponent (50% to 37.9%), chances are you're going to win the game.

Captain Paul Pierce led his team to victory with 14 points, 11 rebounds,  7 assists and 1 steal; while Kevin Garnett kept on partying like it was 1999 with 14 points, 10 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 assist and 1 block. Four other Celtics scored in double figures, including Courtney Lee (with 14 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals), Jason Terry (with 12 points and 5 assists), and Leandro Barbosa (who scored 12 to go with 4 assists and 2 rebounds.

But, the big story was Jeff Green, who continued his recent assault on the aggress-o-meter scoring 17 points (including a couple of seriously emphatic dunks), 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, and 3 (3!!) blocks.

Most notable player for the Orlando Magic as far as the Celtics were concerned was old pal E'Twaun Moore, who scored 14 points 4 assists, 4 rebounds and 1 steal; though Orlando did turn out 5 double-digit scorers of their own.

Next up? The Los Angeles Clippers and the chance to move one game ahead of .500.

Box Score

Tale Of The Tape

THE BUZZ:

Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Clippers
Sunday, February 3rd, 2013
@ 1:00 p.m.
The Boston Garden, Boston, MA

C's Pull Rabbit Out Of A Hat, Vanquish Magic In Overtime: 116-110

The Boston Mixed-Bags? How about the Boston Boxed-Chocolates?

Seriously, though, you really never do know what you're gonna get when it comes to the C's these days as they continue to work on establishing consistency in this toddler stage that is the NBA season. They've been putting it together more often than not lately, but on occasion (like in the 3rd quarter against the Orlando Magic!), they'll go into Space Jam "an alien stole my powers" mode. Again, this is to be expected as they incorporate 10 new players (including rookie Jared Sullinger) into the mix of a championship-or-bust squad, but it can be...shall we say, interesting...to watch at times.

Oh, they started things off well enough taking a 28-22 lead after one and staying ahead by 4 entering half-time. The third quarter, though…the third quarter…let’s just be charitable and say that the C’s must be fans of the AMC show “The Walking Dead,” because the group that took the floor for the 3rd quarter looked like our C’s

portraying the zombified versions of their former selves. Spinning through the undead-Celtics like they were MBTA turnstiles, the Magic went 13 for 17 from the floor – led by hot potato Jameer Nelson (20 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists for the game), who turned the C’s defenders into giant orange traffic cones for use in his own personal obstacle course. Nelson would finish the game scoring 17 points between the 3rd and 4th quarters and the overtime period, and the Magic would head into the 4th quarter up 2.

 

No matter, though. The C’s, showing the resilience and willingness to fight that has been a hallmark of the team for the past five years, battled back on the strength of The Tremendous Trio (I’m giving “The Big Three” a night off to rest), who flipped a seven-point Magic lead into a tie at the end of regulation. Kevin Garnett was especially tremendous during that stretch, scoring 8 points in the last five minutes of regulation play. KG led the C’s with a double-double of 24 points and 10 rebounds while Rajon Rondo not only streaked into a tie with John Stockton for the second-most consecutive double-assist games (16 assists on this night), but he fell just shy of a triple-double with 15 points and 9 rebounds.

 

Paul Pierce, who had yet ANOTHER strong game (23 points, 5 boards), still managed to produce his share of potential “goat” moments not only missing on what could have been the game-winning shot from his preferred spot on the elbow at the top of the key, but he also managed to overcome this…uhm, ahhh…awkward moment in his role as one of the aforementioned orange traffic cones in Nelson’s “All-Star Skills Challenge” workout. That Nelson missed the shot may be one of the only saving graces on what surely will be a point of comedy for The Captain’s teammates and a “Sports Center” favorite this week, at least. In his defense, though, on both plays, you can clearly see his foot slipping on the court before each mishap. 

 

 

In any case, once in the extra period, the Celtics went to work, wrapping the Magic in a defensive blanket and executing down the stretch on offense. Paul Pierce, shaking off any doubt that might have been cast at the end of regulation, hit a clutch three to put the C’s up ahead for good in the overtime, and the Celtics got a tough but satisfying win over a young, active Magic team.

Brandon Bass was beastly, grabbing his own double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Leandro Barbosa was an offensive catalyst, scoring 15 points and Jared Sullinger continues to make Danny Ainge look like a genius with his tantalizing play, this time going for 11 points and 6 rebounds in 19 minutes.

Magician Big Baby Davis tallied 15 points 7 rebounds 3 assists 3 steals against his old team, but he shot just 3-12 from the floor (9-10 on free throws, however); JJ Redick scored 21 on 8-13 shooting; and Aaron Afflalo scored 15 with 7 assists for the Magic cause. Former C's draft pick E'Twaun Moore made 2 from Threeland and hit two freethrows for 8 points.

Box Score

THE BUZZ:

Next Up:

Boston Celtics vs. Brooklyn Nets
Wednesday, November 28th, 2012
7:30 pm
@ Boston Garden