CELTICS GREEN BLOG by and for boston celtics fans: Celtics Break Chicago Curse, Win 92-81

by FLCeltsFan 11:40 PM

The Chicago Bulls had won the past 8 games with the Celtics. Over the past two years it seemed as through they were building much quicker than the Celtics and were rising to the top while the Celtics were mired in mediocrity. But this isn't the same team that lost those last 8 games and tonight they proved it. While the Bulls made a game of it, the Celtics pulled away in the third and held onto the lead to win the game 92-81.

At the half, the Celtics were up 47-43. The Celtics shot 51.5% in the first half while the Bulls shot 40.5%. The Celtics were fairly consistent over the entire game, shooting 51.6% for the game while shutting down the Bulls in the second half, allowing them to shoot only 37% for the game. The Bulls are one of the top rebounding teams in the league but the Celtics won the battle of the boards in this game 45-37.

Rondo had an excellent offensive night, hitting jumpers when he was open and finishing at the hoop. He finished with 18 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists in 42 minutes of play. When the season started, there were doubts as to whether Rondo could handle the point guard duties on this team, but game by game, those doubts are being erased. Eddie House played 12 minutes and finished with 3 points and 1 assist.

Ray Allen scored 21 points but is still struggling with his shot going only 6-16 and finishing with 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal in 44 minutes. Pierce had a tough match up with Deng playing solid defense on him but Pierce also defended Deng well, holding him to 6-17 shooting. Pierce finished with 10 points on 1-8 shooting to go with 6 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals in 38 minutes.

KG blocked an incredible 7 shots in the game to go with his 16 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists in 37 minutes. Down the stretch, KG hit some very clutch shots to seal the win. Perk got into early foul trouble, picking up 2 quick fouls in the first minute or so. Big Baby came in and played so well, Doc kept him in for 26 quality minutes. He finished with 8 points and 12 rebounds. Perk played only 11 minutes but played well in spite of the foul trouble and limited minutes. He had 4 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 block.

Posey heard some boos from the crowd, but it didn't affect his game. He finished with 11 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block in 21 minutes. Tony played only 7 minutes and finished with 1 point, 1 rebound and 1 assist. Pollard, Scal, and Powe did not play.

This was a good win for the Celtics in spite of the Bulls 6-12 record, they shouldn't be taken for granted. They beat the Pistons the previous night and have basically the same players as last year's 49 win team. The Celtics are 5-0 in the second of back to back games now and a league best 17-2 overall. Now, the Celtics have off until Wednesday to rest up and work on getting even better in practice. Scary thought.
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