It may have been ugly, gross, hideous, dirty, bad, sloppy, insert any other negative adjective here, but they got the job done. The Celtics came away with their 12th victory of the season, defeating the Dallas Mavericks, 117-115.
In a topsy-turvy game, both teams showed flashes of brilliance, yet both made silly mistakes. The Mavericks committed an NBA season-high 28 turnovers, while the Celtics almost let this one slip away after leading by as many as 14.
The good:
* I have to start with Paul Pierce. He led all scorers with 34 points on 11-of-25 from the floor. He also grabbed 6 boards, handed out 3 assists, and had 4 steals. After missing a few jumpers with Derek Fisher on him, Pierce finally realized that he had a 6 inch height advantage and drove to the basket for a layup to put the Celtics up 101-99 in the first overtime.
* When this team needed him most, Rajon Rondo stepped up. He finished with a near triple-double of 16 points, 15 assists, and 9 rebounds.
* Although he ended up leading the Mavs with 24 points -- 3 of those points were on a meaningless three-pointer at the end of the game -- O.J. Mayo was held intact tonight. Rajon Rondo spent the majority of his time covering Mayo, and Mayo was only 3-of-7 from beyond the arc.
* Jeff Green continues to make progress. He had 16 points tonight in 27 minutes tonight. More importantly, he was assertive. He took 16 shots, which included a variety of drives to the hoop, jumpers, and three-pointers. He provided the highlight of the night when he provided an emphatic oop to Rajon Rondo's alley in the fourth quarter. It was another glimpse of what this kid can do when given consistent minutes.
* The defense in the first three quarters was really aggressive. They trapped and forced a ton of turnovers, leading to the Celtics dominating in points off turnovers.
The bad:
* The Celtics barely had anything left in the tank for the second overtime. They haven't played a double-overtime game in three years,
* The defensive rotations were very poor, especially off pick-and-rolls. And that may have had something to do with tired legs. Shawn Marion converted on a wide-open layup off a pick-and-roll to tie the game at 92 in the fourth quarter. It was one of many instances of broken defense.
* The end of quarter plays are really starting to bother me. Rajon Rondo took the last shot of regulation and airballed it. Paul Pierce took the last shot at the end of the first overtime and airballed that as well. Both shots went a total of 8 feet. This has been a trend not just this season but in past years as well. Something needs to change. Doc Rivers is widely considered to be the best coach at calling plays out of timeouts, but he and his staff need to come up with something different at the end of quarters and games.
* 60 of the 115 points from the Mavericks came in the paint. Their only legitimate center, Chris Kaman, only played 24 minutes and scored 12 points. The rest came from their backcourt. How do the Celtics let that happen?
* For a team that only has one real big (Chris Kaman), the Mavericks easily outrebounded the Celtics, 50-42. That can't happen.
* Playing 40 minutes and only getting 15 shots is unacceptable for Kevin Garnett.
* The Celtics perimeter defense towards the end of this game was really sub-par. Rajon Rondo let the likes of O.J. Mayo and Derek Fisher get past him; he had a really difficult time staying in front of guys as the game wore on.
One side note: Celtics' trainer Ed Lacerte was presented the Joe O'Toole Trainer of the Year award for 2011-2012 during a timeout in the second quarter. It was the second time he has earned the honor. Considering the injuries the Celtics have had over the years and given the advanced age of the core of this team, Lacerte is one of the more valuable members of the organization. During last year's playoffs, coach Doc Rivers referred to Lacerte as the team's MVP. Well-deserved honor for a great guy.
The C's travel to Texas for the weekend. They will first visit the Houston Rockets on Friday night at 8:00 p.m. before heading to San Antonio on Saturday.
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