<table border="1" class="gamePreview"> <tbody> <tr> <td colspan="2" class="center"> <p align="center"><font face="Verdana">When: Sunday December 17th, 2007 @ 1:00PM EST Where: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON TV/Radio: The SCORE, FAN 590</font></p> </td> </tr> <tr> <td class="center"> <p align="center"><font face="Verdana"> </font></p> <p align="center"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f"><font size="4">Boston Celtics</font> (19-2)</font></p> </p> </td> <td class="center"> <p align="center"><font face="Verdana"> </font></p> <p align="center"><font color="#c8362d"><font face="Verdana"><font size="4">Toronto Raptors</font> </font><font face="Verdana">(14-10)</font></font></p> </p> </td> </tr> <tr class="sectHeader"> <td colspan="2"> <h4 align="center"><font face="Verdana" color="#000000"><center><font size="4">PROJECTED STARTERS</font></center></font></h4> </td> </tr> <tr class="roster"> <td> <p align="center"><font face="Verdana"></font><font face="Verdana"></font> <font size="2" face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">PG-Rajon Rondo SG-Ray Allen </font><font size="2" face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">SF-Paul Pierce PF-Kevin Garnett C-Kendrick Perkins </font><font color="#412367"><font face="Verdana"> <font face="Verdana"></font><font face="Verdana"></font><font face="Verdana"></font></font></font></p> </td> <td> <p align="center"><font face="Verdana"></font><font face="Verdana"></font> <font face="Verdana"><font size="2"><font color="#c8362d">PG-Jose Calderon SG-Anthony Parker SF-Jamario Moon PF-Chris Bosh C-Rasho Nesterovic</font> </font> </font><font color="#b90456"><font face="Verdana"><font face="Verdana"></font><font face="Verdana"></font><font face="Verdana"></font></font></font></p> </td> </tr> <tr class="sectHeader"> <td colspan="2"> <h4><font size="4" face="Verdana" color="#000000"><center>SEASON STATS</center></font></h4> </td> </tr> <tr class="seasonStats"> <td> <table> <tbody> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Scoring:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">101.2PPG</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Field Goal %:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">47.9 %</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">3-Point %:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">38.3 %</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Rebounds:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">42.1 RPG</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Assists:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">23.1 APG</font></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> <td> <table> <tbody> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Scoring:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">98.8PPG</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Field Goal %:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">45.2 %</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">3-Point %:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">43.5 %</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Rebounds:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">41.3 RPG</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Assists:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">23.1 APG</font></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> <tr class="sectHeader"> <td colspan="2"> <h4><font size="4" face="Verdana" color="#000000"><center>TEAM LEADERS</center></font></h4> </td> </tr> <tr class="seasonStats"> <td> <table> <tbody> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Points:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Pierce (21.1 PPG)</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Rebounds:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Garnett (10.5 RPG)</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Assists:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#00a35f">Rondo (5.3 APG)</font></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> <td> <table> <tbody> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Points:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Bosh (19.1 PPG)</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Rebounds:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Bosh (8.5 RPG)</font></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="strong"><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Assists:</font></td> <td><font face="Verdana" color="#c8362d">Calderon(7.9 APG)</font></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> <tr class="sectHeader"> <td colspan="2"> <h4><center><font size="4" face="Verdana" color="#000000">KEY MATCHUP </font></center></h4> <h4><center><font face="Verdana"><font color="#00a35f">Paul Pierce</font> <font color="#000000">vs.</font> <font color="#c8362d">Anthony Parker </font></font></center></h4> <center> <font face="Verdana"></font></p> </center><font face="Verdana"> There's still a chance that Ray Allen won't suit up because of a sore ankle and that makes Pierce that much more important to the Celtics. He showed that he's more than up to the task Friday against the Bucks as he poured in 32 points to lead the C's to a win. Anthony will be required to keep him in check and limit Boston's inside-outside game. In that way, guarding Garnett will be a little bit easier. Pierce, on the other hand, will certainly be looking to build on an excellent performance and will probably come out aggressive.</font></td> </tr> <tr class="sectHeader"> <td colspan="2"> <h4><font size="4" face="Verdana" color="#000000"><center>PREDICTION</center></font></h4> </td> </tr> <tr class="prediction"> <td colspan="2"> <font face="Verdana">I really have no clue what will happen in this game. Call it my biased homerism, but I thought the Raptors showed that they can hang with Boston in the first matchup of the season. And that was before they really started to show some consistency. However, Boston's performance this season can't be discounted and they did give us a buttwhoopin' last time (though we were missing our 3 best players).</font></p> <p align="center"><strike><font size="4" face="Verdana"><font color="#00a35f">Boston wins 100 </font>- <font color="#c8362d">99</font></font></strike><font size="4" face="Verdana"><font color="#c8362d"> Toronto wins 142 - <font color="#00a35f">78</font></font></font></p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </p>
<div align="center"><font size="4"><u>Something to look at while you wait for the game.... </u></font> <div align="justify"><font size="3">EDIT: whoops!</font></div> </div>
<div align="center"><u><font size="4">I'm seeing double.... 4 girls! (I'm making up for the last game thread) </font></u></div>
Man I hate playing the Celtics we always play so shit as our identiy on the offensive end disapears. We are a jump shooting team and I think the Celtics gaurd the perimeter very well and we just look confused when playing offense and we dont really drive alot which kills us when were not making shots. I really thought Bosh in this game would come play very aggressive the entire game but settled for the jump shot too often but overall he had a decent game. Moon really frustrates me, every game he keeps playing a want him off the roster...I dont understand why everyone loves him...I could care less if he plays on the Raptors, yeah he has nice highlights off dunks and has a 17 block streak but he is overated on defense as he always gets destroyed playing man on man and his offensive game is pretty bad when he has to ball handle.</p>
Another lose to the hands of the big two. We really play tight against the Celtics and I don`t know why. We really missed TJ Ford today, he would of brought a solid PG off the bench who can pass and shoot the ball. We missed a lot of open shots and left to many Celtics players open, we need to make adjustments, but I never see them.</p>
Season means nothing once playoff time comes hahahah had to put that in as I have been hearing that alot last season when the Raptors went down to the Nets in the first round. Also if you were able to read Paul Peirce's lips before the tipoff he said "I love the snow."</p>
Couple hundred dollars on tickets, couple hundred dollars on a truck rental and fuel, forty dollars for food and drinks, and twenty for parking, and what a waste it was. Not to mention about seven hours of driving.</p> I think I'm only going to go to fall and spring games from now on. What an ordeal.</p>
Hopefully we learn a lesson from this game! Let's just move onand concentrate on the next game and pick up where we left off before playing today's game... Not having Ford was a factor, but I don't want to make excuses... Celtics just proved that they're better than us </p>
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (MosDefinitely)</div><div class='quotemain'>Damn, where are you from speeds?</div></p> I'm from Kingston, which is normally about a two and a quarter hour drive.</p> </p>