Celtics 102, Sixers 94

This game looked for a long time to be an embarrassing loss to a less talented team as Jayson Tatum threw in a clunker and Jaylen Brown was only somewhat better than Tatum but, in the final analysis, Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart made many winning plays with the game on the line and the Cs eventually prevailed. Both of them played much bigger than their physical statures with both grabbing 8 rebounds to tie for the team lead. Tatum plain and simply had an off night, getting into early foul trouble and connecting on just 6 of 19 shots and only 2 of 9 on treys. Brown was not much better as he was 1 for 5 on treys. The Cs allowed the Sixers to hang around for a very long time before they finally put them away in the closing seconds.

The Cs were led by Walker with 24 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals; Brown had 21 points, 7 boards and 3 assists; Tatum had just 15 points, 6 rebounds and no assists; and Smart had 14 points, 8 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals.

On the positive side, Grant Williams played solidly on both ends of the floor and Brad Wanamaker had another positive game. Disappointing was the play of Semi Ojeleye who failed to impact the stat sheet at all while committing 3 failures to close out on three-point shooters in 12 minutes of playing time. This was his night to make an impression and he failed.

The next game should be Sunday.

Celtics 128, Sixers 101

The Celtics came out very tentative on both ends of the floor and the Sixers were making most of their shots and almost before they knew it, the Cs trailed by 14 before closing the gap to 6 at the end of the quarter. However, the second quarter was a completely different result as the Cs scored 38 in the quarter with Jayson Tatum leading the way but they were also sparked by the solid play on both ends of the floor by the bench, especially Grant Williams and Enes Kanter, along with Brad Wanamaker, and the Cs led 65-57 at the half. They extended their lead to 23, at 98-75, after three quarters and cruised home with the bench playing major minutes in the fourth quarter.

Tatum took charge and led the way with 33 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists; Kemba Walker, after a slow start, caught fire to finish with 22 points, 4 boards and 2 assists; Jaylen Brown had 20 points, 5 rebounds and 1 assist; Marcus Smart had 10 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists; and Enes Kanter had 10 points and 9 boards. Impressive on defense was Romeo Langford who played 23 minutes of solid defense while contributing 6 points to the offense. Tatum has clearly stepped up as the offensive leader of this team, going 8 for 12 on treys and playing tough defense as well. It’s a good thing that he did because Kemba was 1 for 6, Smart was 1 for 7, and Brown was 2 for 7 from the 3-point line.

This demonstration by the bench tonight was most welcome given the loss of Gordon Hayward for 4 weeks after he suffered a Grade 3 right ankle sprain, thankfully not on the leg that he badly dislocated earlier in his Celtic career.

The next game is Friday night at 6:30.

Celtics 109, Sixers 101

In a game that was much closer than the final score would suggest, the Sixers won the first and third quarters and the Cs the second and fourth quarters. Jaylen Brown came up with 15 big points in the fourth quarter to lead the Cs to the win. The Sixers actually led after both the first and third before the Cs closed the deal. This win might prove very costly to the Cs as Gordon Hayward went down with a severely sprained right ankle and will get an MRI later tonight to determine the extent of the damage.

Jayson Tatum led the scorers with 32 points, 13 rebounds and 1 assist; Brown had 29 points, 6 boards, 4 assists and 3 steals; Kemba Walker, after a slow start, came on to score 19 points with a rebound and 5 assists; and Hayward had 12 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals. Also noteworthy was the dearth of offense from the bench players who scored just 8 points in 65 minutess of play. In 32 minutes, Marcus Smart had just 2 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist. Fortunately, he only took 5 shots, all of which were misses. Given that kind of contribution, it was fortunate that the Cs came out with a win.

The next game is Wednesday night.

Wizards 96, Celtics 90

This was the final game before the playoffs begin next week and none of the first six players in the rotation were dressed for the occasion. It was an opportunity for the reserves, who rarely get much court time at this point in the season, to actually get some meaningful minutes. By the same token, the
Wizards were without their best players as well.

Javonte Green was impressive in leading the Cs scorers with 23 points and 4 rebounds and Semi Ojeleye, whose offensive game has improved significantly since his arrival in Boston, had 13 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists. They were the only player in double figures.Vincent Poirier impressed with 8 rebounds and 3 blocked shots. On the negative side, Tremont Water was 2 of 14 from the floor and Carson Edwards was 3 for 11. Rob Williams had 6 points on 3 for 3 shooting in just 6 minutes of play.

The playoffs begin next week with the Cs facing the somewhat injury depleted Sixers. Given their tendency to play down to the level of their opponents, this series may be closer than it should be.

Celtics 114, Pacers 111

A win is a win, especially when it came dangerously close to being another jittery loss. After leading by 14 points after three quarters, the Cs went into collapse mode, overdribbling, jacking up shots and failing to guard the three-point line. Thus, with seconds to go, the Cs actually lost the lead before Marcus Smart stepped up and made 2 big free throws and the Cs held on for the win. In addition to failing to guard against treys, the Cs simply made dumb plays. Fortunately, they weren’t fatal. Kemba Walker is really suffering from a case of the jitters. Tonight he was 3 of 12 from the floor, 2 of 8 on treys, several of which were wide open, and he missed a crucial free throw with the game on the line. He is also not driving the ball to the rim the way he did earlier in the season and before he went down with knee soreness.

The Cs were led by Jayson Tatum with 30 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals and 0 TOs; Gordon Hayward had 27 points, 10 boards, 5 assists, 2 steals and a blocked shot; Daniel Theis had 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocks; Marcus Smart had 16 points, 5 boards and 5 assists; and Walker had 11 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists. Theis just continues to impact winning, making a huge trey during one of their cold spells and shooting 8 for 18 from the floor.

Once again, the contributions from the bench were minimal. Enes Kanter, in particular, has been very disappointing of late, especially his ability to score in the paint. In the first half, the bench scored a total of 5 points in 37 minutes, a paltry amount to be sure.

At least they stopped their losing streak; let’s hope they can find another win in Milwaukee on Thursday night.

Thunder 105, Celtics 104

Kemba Walker topped off another subpar performance with a horrible turnover with 13 seconds left and a one-poiint lead, and Dennis Schroder converted his steal for a layup. The result was another loss at home, now 4 in a row. Worse, they deserved to lose as both Jayson Tatum and Walker underperformed offensively and the starters underperformed defensively. Once again one has to wonder about minutes distribution as Semi Ojeleye, one of their best defenders, was rewarded with 3 minutes playing time after turning in the best two back-to-back games, both offensively and defensively, in his 3-year career, while Robert Williams, Grant Williams and Romeo Langford were given 14, 15 and 20 minutes respectively in this contest. This is all very puzzling.

Gordon Hayward’s comeback was a success as he led the scorers with 24 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, a steal and 2 blocks while committing 0 TOs; Tatum had another subpar shooting night as he scored just 19 points on 22 shots, along with 5 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals, but committed 3 TOs; Marcus Smart had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists, but 3 TOs; Kemba Walker had just 14 points, on 4 for 14 from the floor and 2 for 9 on treys, but 2 TOs; and Daniel Theis had 11 points, 5 boards and 3 assists, but 3 TOs. In 64 minutes, the bench produced just 24 points. However, it’s not really their faults since the starters take the majority of the shots while the subs are on the floor and plays are rarely run to get bench players involved offensively. They once again played without Jaylen Brown, but that is no excuse as the Thunder played without one of their top scorers too. Once again, it was the inability to defend guards as Chris Paul and Schroder combined for 55 points.

Bottom line, the Cs are taking too many forced shots and there is entirely too much dribbling and too many turnovers committed by those dribblers. Coupled with passive defense and lackluster ball movement, it has mired them in a slump from which they seem to lack the maturity to extricate themselves.

The next game is Tuesday night in Indiana against the Pacers.

Utah Jazz 99, Celtics 94

The Cs allowed the Jazz to make 17 poorly-defended treys and that was the difference in this game. The Cs were without Jaylen Brown and Gordon Hayward and Kemba Walker was on a minutes restriction. Jayson Tatum and Marcus Smart took the majority of shots and both missed more shots than they made. When Tatum is 7 for 19, Smart is 9 for 23, and Walker is 5 for 17, this team is not capable of winning and that was the story of this game tonight. Both Daniel Theis and Semi Ojeleye played solidly but they did not get enough shot attempts to make a difference. There was entirely too much dribbling by Tatum, Walker and Smart, which crippled good ball movement, and none of it was designed to create shot opportunities for their teammates.

Smart led the scorers with 29 points, 3 rebounds and an assist; Tatum had 18 points, 7 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals; Walker had 13 points, 3 boards and 7 assists; and Theis had 12 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists. Both Ojeleye and Brad Wanamaker had 9 points.

The Cs started well and led 27-16 at the 9-minute mark of the first quarter before going into a defensive malaise which extended through until halftime when the Jazz led 62-49. The game was never close after that. They allowed the Jazz to record 17 made treys and the Jazz made 10 for 16 in the first half. The rest of the game was never as close as the final score when Smart hit a trey at the buzzer.

Once again, Ojeleye played solidly, grabbing 7 rebounds and drawing two charges on Jazz made-baskets. He made two of his first shots but then went long periods of time before he was given the ball in decent shooting position. His offensive skill development had been impressive this year and it is difficult to understand why Grant Williams continues to be favored over Ojeleye for minutes. One of the problems with the Cs is that, when healthy, 5 players take the majority of shots with the result that when bench players are asked to score, they are ill-prepared to do so.

The next game is Sunday afternoon at home against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Celtics 112, Cavaliers 106

This was one of the most rewarding games I have watched all year long because there finally came a night when Semi Ojeleye was given the kind of minutes he deserves, 30, and he had a career-high 22 points, on 8 of 11 from the floor and 5 of 8 on treys, and he was the difference in this game. He always plays great defense and he definitely contributed there as well. To my way of thinking, Semi has been this year’s version of Brad Wanamaker last year, never given a decent amount of playing time while watching a rookie, Grant Williams, play regularly night after night. The best of Ojeleye’s success is that he is one of the hardest workers on the team by reputation and no one deserved the success he had in this game more than he did. I’m also left wondering why Carsen Edwards, who had a monster pre-season game in this arena, never got a single minute of play tonight while Tremont Waters was given 16 minutes during which he did nothing spectacular.

The Cs led at all the stops but the game was within reach for the Cavs, who were also short-handed tonight, and they are a weak team that has little idea of how to win. The Cs were missing Kemba Walker, Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown but Jayson Tatum, playing with a cold, led the scoring once again.
He had 32 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals but he also committed 5 TOs. Ojeleye was next with 22 points, Marcus Smart overcame a horrible first half during which he was 1 for 10 from the floor, while allowing his man to score 18 points and establish a career-high 41 points. Smart’s reputation as a stout defender has taken hits from Russell Westbrook, Caris LeVert and Collin Sexton tonight. He finished with 17 points but was 0 for 5 on treys and also had 4 TOs. And Enes Kanter had a decent game with 10 points and 11 rebounds in just 14 minutes.

The next game is Friday night at home against the Utah Jazz whose shooting guard Donovan Mitchell is also a scoring machine. Defense against opposing guards has become a genuine weakness for the Cs.

Nets 129, Celtics 120, OT

First, the Cs never had an answer for Caris LeVert who torched them for 50 points. Second, the Cs have been seriously bitten by the illness/injury bug as they lost the services of Gordon Hayward and Jaylen Brown during the course of this game as Hayward did not return for the second half and Brown tweaked a hamstring in the waning moments of regulation and could not return in the overtime period. And Kemba Walker had 21 points in a so-so return from injury but he was on a minutes restriction so he couldn’t be used for more time either. The result of all that was a loss to the Nets in OT.

For a long time, it appeared that Brad Stevens was going to garner a win using 11 players, several for significant minutes. However, a dumb foul by Marcus Smart with 1 second left on a trey attempt by LeVert, allowed the Nets to tie the score in regulation. It also caused Smart to foul out. Without Smart or Brown, the Cs were completely unable to stop LeVert. In a way it’s a shame they had to lose this game because they had good performances from several players. Robert Williams returned from a lengthy injury rehab to score 10 points and make some big shots at crunch time, Javonte Green and Carson Edwards both had positive minutes after not seeing action in several games, and Walker was able to work off some of his rust as well.

Brown led the scorers with 22 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists; Walker had 21 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists, but had 4 turnovers; Daniel Theis continued his solid play with 16 points, 2 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots; Smart had 14 points, 6 boards, 10 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks; Robert Williams had 10 points and 3 rebounds; and Brad Wanamaker had 9 points and 4 assists, but he also had 4 TOs.

The next game is tomorrow night in Cleveland against the Cavaliers.

Rockets 111, Celtics 110, OT

This was a terrific game to watch as the second half was action-packed from beginning to end. While the Cs played a great first half, when they led 56-45, they were not as solid on defense and they constantly rushed and forced shots on offense, and committed turnovers, during the entire second half and the overtime period. And while they did a decent job defending James Harden, keeping him below his average, they failed miserably with Russell Westbrook who torched them for 41 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, all while committing 6 turnovers. The Cs were also outhustled on multiple occasions in the second half, failing several times to grab key rebounds. Ball movement for the Cs was also weak and they received precious little help from their bench, both offensively and defensively.

The Cs were led by Jayson Tatum with 32 points, 13 boards, and 5 assists, but he forced a number of shots and committed 5 TOs; Marcus Smart had 26 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals; Jaylen Brown had 22 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists; Gordon Hayward had 18 points, 6 boards, 4 assists and 3 steals; and Daniel Theis had 8 points, 15 rebounds and 3 blocked shots and actually shot and made the game winner right after time expired. No doubt they missed Kemba Walker who continues to nurse his knee injury, on both ends of the floor.

The only Celtic to shoot a decent percentage was Hayward and it didn’t help their cause that they missed 6 free throws, 4 by Tatum and 2 by Brown. Of the four reserves who played, only Semi Ojeleye acquitted himself well on defense, taking 2 charges for offensive fouls and grabbing 5 rebounds. Grant Williams, Romeo Langford and Brad Wanamaker all struggled defensively.

The next game is Tuesday night at home against the Brooklyn Nets.