The events that took place tonight have me in a state of complete shock. I am so much in shock that I am not angry nor do I know who I should be angry with. A series that was suppose to be a 4 game tuneup for the Cavaliers has turned into a competitive series of its own. The Atlanta Hawks did the unthinkable tonight beating the Boston Celtics a second straight time and ensuring that the series will go back to Atlanta.
Why the Celtics lost:
1) Joe Johnson. The former Celtic scored 20 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter. He simply took the game over and no one could stop him. Ray Allen could do nothing to even slow down Johnson as he played like a man posessed. I would have like to seen Doc make an adjustment by putting James Posey or even Tony Allen on Johnson but that never happened.
2) Foul Shooting. The Celtics were a woeful 10-18 from the foul line. They actually almost shot a better percent from downtown than the stripe. The Hawks went 29-33 from the line. It is easy to make the argument that the game was won at the line.
3) Early Foul Trouble. After the initial on slaught that saw the Celtics jump out to a quick 16-3 lead, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Kendrick Perkins each picked up 2 quick fouls. They were never really able to get into the flow of the game after that point.
4) Lack of a Bench. It is well known that the Celts have a much deeper bench than the Hawks. Tonight the Celts bench was non-existent. Sam Cassell was suppose to be a veteran presence off the bench that was solely brought in for the playoffs. Tonight Sam played like dog crap (for lack of a better term), hoisting shots that can't find the rim and turning the ball over.
Yes, the Celtics are coming back to the Garden for Game 5. But the Hawks have all the momentum coming back into Boston. If the Celtics cannot fix the aforementioned behaviors, they could be in a world of trouble.
Game 5 is Wednesday night, time to be determined. Hopefully the shock will be worn off by then.
-Scottie
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