Gino's Jungle

CELTICS 92  HEAT 85

Yet again, for the second game in a row, the Celtics got out to a fast start on the offensive end. The only problem was they also let the Heat get out and run their offense. Like the vintage Celtics, however, the team figured out what was going wrong and fixed it throughout the remainder of the game. After giving up 31 points in the 1st quarter, the C's only allowed 17, 17, and 20 points in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quarters respectively.

The Heat as usual were lead by Wade who finished with 27 points and 6 assists. Even though he scored 27 points, he did so on 23 FG attempts and 8 free throws attempts. With that being said, the Celtics defense did their job in not allowing Wade to get to the rim at ease. A mixture of Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, and Marquis Daniels (along with help defense) forced Wade to, for the majority, shoot contested jumpers. As a team, you can live with him shooting with a hand in his face. If he makes it, good for him, if not, the defense did its job.

With a late spark, Michael Beasley got into a rhythm for a period of time. He was knocking down threes, getting to the bucket, and getting to the line. At one point he looked like he would take the game over. That is, until KG came back in and gave him a reality check.

The leader of the Celtics was Kevin Garnett tonight. He went 11-12 from the floor and scored 24 points. Respect for these numbers comes in when we realize not all of them were layups or dunks. He was taking HIS jump shot and nailing it with precision. When that thing goes down like it has been, it is awesome to watch. But, like I said before, he not only was doing it on offense but on defense as well. He was a machine when guarding Beasley, and was helping and switching off onto other players like the old KG we know and love. KG was chosen as the Hardwood Houdini Player of The Week: View the award description by clicking here.

Flying under the radar in this game was the defensive work by Kendrick Perkins. I had previously done a post on Hardwood Houdini called, "Kendrick Perkins The.... Beast? Maybe?". In this post I questioned why his defense from last year had not carried into this year yet. Perkins did his work tonight with 3 blocked shots and only 3 fouls. He kept himself in the game, and what a gift that was for the Celtics defense.

As far as the team goes, I was impressed with what I saw. If you take out the one charge the Heat had in the 3rd, the Celtics were the dominant force all night. We were playing with more rhythm, movement, and feel for the game than were the Heat. If you were to throw out the first quarter, the C's probably hold the Heat to around 75 points and that is something to be proud of. The team should carry a lot of confidence going into Charlotte on Tuesday night, a place that has given them fits in the past couple years.

(Photo via NBAYahooSports)

(Photo by Issac Baldizon/NBAE via Getty Images)