Celtics out of line <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>There is a tendency for everyone involved - players, coaches, fans, media - to look at a lopsided free throw total and blame the officiating crew. The next step is to wait for a flurry of makeup calls. That mentality will be prevalent today when the Celtics [team stats] attempt to finally put away the team that refuses to die in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff series with the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks attempted 71 more free throws than the C’s over the first six games of the series. In its three wins, the No. 8 seed in the East held a 107-65 edge, including a 47-25 advantage in Friday night’s Game 6 in Atlanta. Coach Doc Rivers repeatedly referred to that alarming differential following his top-seeded team’s most recent loss. But even Rivers had to admit after yesterday’s practice that the Celtics have themselves to blame. The Hawks may not be the better team, but they are absolutely a quicker team and, at the moment, a more energized team. They are winning the battles for loose balls and offensive rebounds. And they have the best defensive team in the league doubting itself. “At the end of the day it’s our defense,” Rivers said. “They’ve done well offensively. Some of it is their quickness. But we should have just as much energy.” The problem is that the added familiarity that comes with a seven-game playoff series appears to be working more for the Hawks than the Celtics. Atlanta has honed its attack and discovered weaknesses. In Game 6, the Celtics were at a loss to stop that attack. They committed more fouls and the Hawks lived at the line, where they scored 11 of their 24 fourth-quarter points. For a Celtics team that shut down the league, defending a 37-win team really shouldn’t be this challenging. Right? “Our problem has been a little bit of both - their quickness and their offensive rebounding,” P.J. Brown said. “They’re really focused on attacking the basket. It’s been a lot better for us at home. But when we’re in our defensive stances, we have to really think about them driving the ball. Let them shoot jumpers. A lot of times we’re off-balance when we try to stop them from driving.” Atlanta’s attack, at least when the Hawks are playing at home at Philips Arena, has become a maddening challenge, however. “We’re the No. 1 team in the league and we just haven’t been able to figure these guys out in Atlanta,” Brown said. “They really feed off that atmosphere down there, with the crowd and everything else. It’s very weird. But it also seems like when we’ve been able to take a lead that we relax a bit.’</div> Ray Allen takes a moment to hone his free throw shooting at practice yesterday.
Are they watching the game??? Anybody with eyes and a brain can see that the hawks are attacking the basket, while Boston is settling for jumpshots. Now am I wrong?
