[5-1] Celtics survive Pacer comeback |Veteran Domination

Nice game against portland, Pierce, Garnett, Shaq and robinson had big games 16 or more points and you played well on defense.

Thanks, the team has been playing great lately. Hopefully they can keep it up.

Great finish! Not the best night for Allen shooting the ball and only 1/7 from downtown I see, but that one came at just the right time.

Yea, I couldn't believe that they left Ray wide open for that last shot. Even if he goes cold, you never leave him wide open.

Jefferson, Spurs hand C's first loss of season



The Big Shamrock was a big contributor to the Celtics offense before foul trouble took him out of the game. | Jefferson's ability to draw fouls proved to be too much for the Celtic's bigs.


The Celtics were handed their first loss of the season tonight by the currently undefeated San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs, led by their rebounding and the red hot shooting of Richard Jefferson, were able to take a lead in the first quarter and hold it for the entire game. Richard Jefferson was responsible for most of the Celtics troubles thanks to his ability to take it to the rim and get Shaquille O'Neal into foul trouble. Tim Duncan was also a force with his stat line of 23 points and 10 rebounds. It was with the help of him, Antonio McDyess and even Dejuan Blair that the Spurs were able to get so many second chances on missed shots.

Doc Rivers was very disappointed in his team's rebounding effort. "We didn't box out and we didn't hustle for rebounds. You can't expect to win games without boxing out your opponent."

"We were getting outhustled on just about every rebounded", added Kevin Garnett. "It hurts a team when you can't get second chances."



Player of the Game: Richard Jefferson

Rondo cleared to play against the Knicks tomorrow


Celtic trainer Solomon Houston has confirmed that Rondo will suit up against the Knicks tonight.

"His finger is still a little sore and he won't be at 100% tonight but he should be in good enough shape to play.", said Houston in an interview.

Rondo hasn't played since the Celtic's home opener against Denver. At first, the injury was thought to be to his elbow but was eventually confirmed to be a sprained finger.

When asked about playing tonight, Rondo had this to say: "I can't wait to finally play. I've been anxious to redeem myself after that injury against Denver. Nate has been amazing since I've been out and now he can finally get some rest on the bench. "

"This is why you need a bench as deep as ours. You never know when foul trouble or an injury can strike."

Thank god for 29-game dynasties, Rondo missed just 3 games.

Tough loss there, but good news about Rondo.

Thank god for 29-game dynasties, Rondo missed just 3 games.

Yea, even with Nate playing out of his mind, I really need Rondo's defense to win some of these games.

Tough loss there, but good news about Rondo.

That Spurs game was the toughest game I've played so far. It seemed like every rebound went to them. Hopefully, Rondo can give me some extra help on the boards.

Pierce drops 25 points; C's easily dispose of Knicks



Amare was absolutely dominant on the boards with 16 rebounds | Pierce scored an impressive 25 points while also getting key Knicks players in foul trouble early.

The New York Knicks proved to be no match for the Celtics tonight here in Madison Square Garden. With the return of previously injured Rajon Rondo, the Celtic defense proved to be too much for the Knick offense to handle. Amare Stoudemire had an amazing night with 15 points and 16 rebounds and proved to be too much for the Celtic bigs. Raymond Felton also had an impressive night with 19 points and 5 assists. The rest of the Knick offense was stagnant and lacked the ability to keep up with the Celtics.

Paul Pierce was the difference maker in tonight's game with 25 points and 8 assists. His ability to take it to the hoop and draw fouls had the Knicks starters in early foul trouble. Rajon Rondo was decent in his first game since the home opener with 9 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals.

"We've missed Rondo's defense since his injury. His stat sheet may not show it, but most of the team's steals came from Rondo.", according to Doc Rivers.

Celtic trainer Solomon Houston on Rondo's return: "I was surprised at how aggressive Rondo was taking it to the hoop. In my past experience, players coming off of injuries are hesitant to take it
aggressive to the hoop after-wards. I'm glad to see that it hasn't affected his game in the least."






Player of the Game: Paul Pierce

Knicks didn't get much from their bench in that one, while you received solid performances from your top eight players. Nice win.

Rondo goes off to stop Pacers second half surge


Danny Granger's went on fire in the second half, but wasn't enough to bring his team back. | Rondo went down with an injury in the second quarter, but eventually came back.

The Celtics were once again able to outlast a third quarter run by Danny Granger and the Indiana Pacers last night to get their 5th win of the season. Rondo, who went out with an arm injury in the second quarter, came back in the third to score 15 of the Celtics 24 points in that quarter. Rondo also dominated with his defense, getting 8 steals during the entire course of the game. Nate Robinson was once again a huge spark off the bench during Rondo's injury, and scored 22 points in only 15 minutes of game time.

Danny Granger did his best to bring his Pacers team back into the game in the third quarter, scoring almost all of his teams points for the entire quarter. Tyler Hansbrough was the only help Granger had throughout most of the game with 15 points and 16 rebounds. The Pacers bench was pretty much useless, getting easily contained by the Celtics bench.

So far, there have been no reports on the severity of Rondo's second quarter injury.



Player of the Game: Kevin Garnett

Fine win, hope Rondo doesn't have to miss more time though.

Why Rondo don't have a headband?

Because the headshape included in the current version of the PC Project for 06 is from 08 and doesn't support headbands in 06.

Clutch has made some updates which will be in the next version that are currently available in his Dynasty thread. Among them is an update for Rondo which will allow him to wear a headband; it's assigned in the .dbf so if you put that update in your sgsm folder, the headband will be displayed.

BD1599, What Rosters Do You Use?

Lol, I just played a game against Pacers with Celtics in season mode - http://forums.nba-live.com/viewtopic.php?f=73&t=74847.