As expected, the Sixers are playing hard and giving the Celtics all they can handle. The good news is Boston is up 50-46.
Here are some thoughts:
* When Rajon Rondo is in attack mode, the Celtics are virtually unstoppable. In the first half, Rondo was unstoppable. He has been doing it all so far. He almost had a triple-double in the first quarter with 10 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists. He's made some crazy layups, and he's 7-of-11 from the floor including knocking down that jumper from the elbow/free-throw line area with consistency. In 18 minutes, Rondo has already collected a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. He also has 8 assists, 2 blocks, 1 steal, and only 1 turnover. The Celtics will be happy with the result if Rondo keeps up this pace.
* Paul Pierce leads the way for Boston with 15 points on 5-of-11 from the field. He got a heavy dose of shots in the first quarter (8) and connected on half of them. Nonetheless, he looks solid.
* The Celtics started the second quarter with a big lineup of Courtney Lee, Jason Terry, Jeff Green, Jared Sullinger, and Kevin Garnett. That lineup did a tremendous job, especially on the defensive end. They brought tremendous energy, were very aggressive, and did not give the Sixers any easy shots. They held the Sixers to 6 points in nearly 5 minutes of action until Lee came out at the 7:07 mark. Those 6 points were 2 free throws, a jumper, and only one basket inside the paint, an area the Celtics struggled in during the first quarter.
* One area of concern so far has been points in the paint. The Sixers have had a lot of good looks inside, but the Celtics have had numerous strips and blocks from behind that have prevented what would be easy layups. In the first quarter, Philly doubled up the Celtics, 16-8 on points in the paint. For the game, Philly has a 24-18 edge in that category so far.
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