Game 37 Preview: Bobcats at Celtics

Kevin Garnett will look to make a little history tonight.

The Celtics (19-17) continue their five-game homestand tonight as they play host to the lowly Charlotte Bobcats (9-27).

The good news for the Bobcats is that they are no longer the cellar-dwellers of the Southeast Division, as that title belongs to the Washington Wizards. The other good news is that they have already won more games this year (9) than they did all of last year (7).

The Bobcats are losers of three straight games coming into tonight's action, with their most recent defeat coming on Saturday night at the hands of the Indiana Pacers, 96-88.

Tonight may include a bit of history as well, as Kevin Garnett is 14 points away from passing Hall-of-Famer Patrick Ewing (24,815) for 16th on the all-time scoring list. Garnett is currently the second active leading scorer in the NBA behind Kobe Bryant.

Meanwhile, Boston is riding a five-game winning streak, a run that includes victories over quality opponents such as the New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers, and the Atlanta Hawks. Charlotte is not exactly a quality opponent, but it is the NBA, and anything can happen on any given night.

Here's a preview:

Projected lineups:

Bobcats:
Kemba Walker
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
Jeffrey Taylor
Hakeem Warrick
Bismack Biyombo

Celtics:
Rajon Rondo
Avery Bradley
Paul Pierce
Brandon Bass
Kevin Garnett

Keys to the game:

1. Staying focused: Although this game should not be close, the Celtics should not take the Bobcats lightly. Charlotte does have three wins against teams that are, if the season ended today, playoff teams. Charlotte is a young, aggressive team. Their average age is 25.6 years, good for 11th youngest in the NBA, and have an average of 4.4 years of experience. They rank in the bottom third in almost every statistical category. All of this doesn't give the Celtics to ability to take their foot off the gas. They need to play with the same intensity that has carried them on their five-game winning streak. They need to go get this one.

2. Turnovers: One area that the Bobcats have done a nice job in so far has been turnovers. Charlotte just a hair above the Celtics in turnovers per game. They come in with the 6th fewest turnovers per game (14.2) to Boston who is 7th (14.3). Charlotte likes to get out and run whenever they can, as they rank third in the league in fast break points at 17.7. As always -- and it's especially the case tonight -- the Celtics need to take care of the basketball, because if they don't, they may just get into a track meet with the Bobcats.