The first quarter saw the Boston Celtics score only seven points against Atlanta. Cleveland Cavaliers at Detroit Pistons (+4.5, 200.5)Cavaliers lead series 2-0The Cleveland Cavaliers put on a spectacular shooting exhibition in Game 2 and attempt to take a 3-0 lead in the first-round series when they visit the Detroit Pistons on Friday.
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For the second consecutive game, Boston will be without its second-leading scorer, Avery Bradley, when Game 3 tips off Friday night.
Stevens had talked about his team’s recurrence of bad starts, and sure enough, they gave up a 24-3 Hawks run over the first 6:32 of the first quarter.
The Boston Celtics finally get to play in front of TD Garden but they have their backs against the wall.
Thomas led the Celtics with 16 points on a 4-of-15 showing.
“He’s feeling a little better, from what I’ve been told”, Stevens said before Game 3.
This game was far more physical than either of the first two.
After their opening salvo, the Hawks made just 23 of 69 shots (33 percent) the rest of the way.
Thomas said of Crowder: “He’s a fighter”.
There is hope, as Amir Johnson showed signs of an inside game for Boston, bringing energy to the game and scoring 14 points and pulling down 8 rebounds in 21 minutes of play. If Crowder can find his shot on the offensive end and start making some three-point shots, the Celtics should be in every game and should be in a good position to win those games. Kent Bazemore and Dennis Schroeder each had 20.
The Celtics conjured an inspiring comeback that fell just short in Game 1, but there’s one stat that provides an indication as to how lopsided the first two games have been as a whole.
Marcus Smart and Jared Sullinger will start the game on the bench while Evan Turner and Jonas Jerebko get the start.
It meant the Celtics were a much smaller team, but it also translated into a group that was a lot quicker and active in transition. Boston used the jolt to build its double-digit first-half lead. The 6-foot-10 inch Horford hit three of his four shots from deep in Atlanta’s one-point win.
Most notably, Thomas and Schroder were issued double technical fouls following a brief face-to-face moment. There were flagrant fouls and reviews for several others. That was nearly immediately followed by a flagrant foul on the other end by Paul Millsap on Sullinger.
“He had a heck of a night”, Budenholzer said.
“Anytime you’re in the seat that I am, you’re trying to figure out any which way to get the best possible shot”, Stevens said. “We have a lot of good players in this room that have done a lot of good things throughout the year”. “He got mad, he was talking”.
“I guess we’ll see what happens”, he said. “He’s great at understanding, feeling and reading the game”.
“Allen Iverson just said “Keep fighting”. Isiah Thomas is far too elite of a player to be held controlled for two games in a row.
Hawks: Schroder had his highest-scoring playoff game.
The Hawks made nine of their first 13 shots, knocking down six from outside the 3-point stripe.
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Atlanta looked like a totally different team in Game 2.
