76ers Vs. Celtics: Philadelphia Wins Tight Defensive Battle, 82-81

As far as the other side of the ball is concerned, our friends over at the aptly named CelticsBlog seem resigned to thinking that if they were just able to get some shots to fall that the game would have ended up going in the other direction.

That explanation would make sense in quite a few games, but Jeff Clark explained his team’s woes too well not to excerpt them here.

Why is Boston’s offense doing nothing? Kevin Garnett looks mortal again. The Celtics’ star, after two huge turn-back-the-clock games in Game 6 against the Hawks and Game 1 of this series, has played just 19 minutes and has only four shot attempts. When Garnett isn’t scoring or shooting, the Celtics’ offense is toast, especially with Paul Pierce and Ray Allen playing through injuries.

Fueled by that one working, Rondo tried the trick again. This one failed.

Just shoot the layups, Rajon. It’s okay to score sometimes.

The Celtics are out to an early 9-0 lead, as every 76ers starter has missed one shot. The problem? In an attempt to keep the tempo high, the 76ers are rushing shots. Spencer Hawes’s fadeaway in the lane on the third possession was a classic example. He wasn’t completely open, but because he felt that was the best shot he’d get, he rushed it.

When you rush shots against the Celtics’ defense, they get out and get points in the secondary transition. Philadelphia has to be more patient going forward.