Celtics (23-3) at Sonics (8-20) 12/27

[FLCeltsFan]

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Boston Celtics (23-3) at Sonics (8-20)
Thursday, December 27
10:30 PM ET
Game #27, Road Game #12
TV: RTV, TNT
Sirius 123
Key Arena



Probable Starters

PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Ray Allen
SF: Paul Pierce
PF: Kevin Garnett
C: Kendrick Perkins

Off the Bench:
Eddie House, Brian Scalabrine, James Posey, Tony Allen, Big Baby Davis, Scot Pollard, Leon Powe

Key off the Bench

James Posey

Injuries
None





PG: Earl Watson
SG: Kevin Durant
SF: Damien Wilkins
PF: Chris Wilcox
C: Kurt Thomas

Off the Bench
Wally Szczerbiak, Nick Collison, Luke Ridnour, Jeff Green, Delonte West, Mickael Gelabale

Key off the Bench

Wally Szczerbiak

Injuries
Johan Petro, Elbow hyper-extension, game time decision
Robert Swift, Knee contusion, day to day
Delonte West, Plantar fasciitis, game time decision

Keys to the Game:
Crash the boards. The Sonics are 3rd in the league in defensive rebounding with 32.96 per game and 4th in rebounding overall with 44.5. The Celtics need to take that advantage away by aggressively going after rebounds on both ends.

Energy. The Celtics will be playing in the second of back to back games and will need to come out with energy and sustain that energy for 4 quarters. The Sonics are going to be fired up to beat the Celtics and they must match that intensity.

Defense. The Celtics are on the road playing in the second of back to back games and when teams are fatigued, the defense is the first to suffer because it takes energy and committment. The Celtics must keep their defensive intensity up even though they are fatigued.

Game Notes:
This will be an emotional game with Ray Allen returning to Seattle and Delonte and Wally facing their former team. Delonte has been battling plantar fasciitis but did play 2:46 in the Sonics last game so he may be available for this game. Wally has been averaging 19 points coming off the bench.

Over the last 5 games, the Sonics bench has outscored their opponents' benches 46-32. Durant has scored in double figures in 25 of their 27 games and leads all rookies with 19.9 ppg. Delonte needs just 5 points to reach 2000 points for his career.

Last season, these two teams split the series 1-1. Ray Allen averaged 18.5 points and 5.5 rebounds against the Celtics last season. The Sonics are 5-5 in their last 10 games and are 4-9 at home.
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