Game 74 Preview: Celtics at Timberwolves

The walking wounded -- aka the Boston Celtics (38-35) -- are back at it tonight as they travel to 'Sota to take on the Timberwolves (26-46).

The C's are coming off a brutal loss last night at the hands of the New York Knicks, 108-89.

During that game, Paul Pierce rolled his right ankle and spent the entire fourth quarter sitting on the bench with the ankle wrapped in ice. Coach Doc Rivers said after last night's game that Pierce would not play tonight.

For the Timberwolves, Nikola Pekovic is questionable with ankle woes of his own.

Minnesota is 3-3 in their last six games, including a 101-93 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday night.

With all their injuries, road woes and the fact that they're on the second night of a back-to-back, the Celtics will have their hands full and then some tonight.

Here's a preview:

Projected lineups:

Celtics:
Avery Bradley
Jordan Crawford
Jeff Green
Brandon Bass
Chris Wilcox

Timberwolves:
Ricky Rubio
Luke Ridnour
Andrei Kirilenko
Derrick Williams
Greg Stiemsma

Keys to the game:

1. Taking advantage: The Wolves -- along with the Celtics -- are one of the few teams in the NBA who let up more points than they score. Also, they could be missing their top two scorers, so offense will be even harder to come by tonight. The Celtics have to capitalize on that. They need to make this a grind-it-out game and keep the score in double digits.

2. Seeing what you got: Tonight will be a great opportunity for Rivers to see what he has with his bench. Terrence Williams, Shavlik Randolph, Jordan Crawford, Chris Wilcox, here you go. This is your time to shine. Tonight will allow Rivers to see who he can use during the playoffs.