Blog

As Rajon Rondo served the first of his two-game suspension, the Celtics coasted to a 96-78 victory.

Courtney Lee, Jeff Green, and Jason Terry all shined in the win.

Tonight, Boston takes on a 7-7 Milwaukee team that played surprisingly well in the first month of the season.

A few days after an emotional opening night battle in Miami, the Celtics lost their home opener to these very Bucks.

Statistically speaking, the game was fairly even. However, Milwaukee controlled the tempo for much of the game, dictating the pace of play.

Boston was successful at doing this last night, making life difficult for Blazers rookie point guard Damian Lillard. The team was able to create turnovers and force Portland into taking bad shots, which led to transition baskets.

If the Celtics can do this tonight in Milwaukee, they should be able to earn two important victories without the presence of their all-star point guard.

A major key to this game will be taking the crowd out of it. An electrified Bradley Center is the last thing that Boston needs.

As far as X’s and O’s go, The Celtics team defense must be able to contain the dynamic backcourt duo of Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis. Lee should be able to handle one of the two, while Terry and Leandro Barbosa were effective defending against Portland’s guards last night.

Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett only played twenty-seven and twenty-three minutes respectively last night. With the two well rested, it is important that they are able to lead the way and carry Boston in this game.

Seeing Green string together two big performances back-to-back would also be really nice, both for the team and for his confidence.

The Celtics pick and roll defense will be tested heavily tonight and the team must be able to mitigate this, otherwise, it could be a long night at that end of the floor. Boston will also have to be active in the rebounding game. In yesterday’s win over the Timberwolves, Larry Sanders recorded a triple-double that included twelve rebounds. Ersan Ilyasova is also very active on the glass, as is second-year forward, Tobias Harris.