Celtics-Suns review: Boston bench key in win

Share

BOSTONThe Boston Celtics starters weren't too shabby against the Phoenix Suns. 
But the C's second unit?
Better.
Better than their Phoenix counterparts.
Better than the Phoenix starters. 
Better than their own starters. 
It was the kind of performance that once again showcased the promise that this unit has, and reaffirmed why players such as Jason Terry remained confident in the second unit's success even when they weren't playing particularly well.
"We'll get it together," Terry told CSNNE.com recently. "It's going to take time, but we'll get it. We'll start clicking. We'll take off."
That was indeed the case on Wednesday night as Boston's second unit outscored the Suns' backups, 47-16.
And it wasn't just one or two players, either. 
It was the kind of balanced bench attack that has made the Celtics (18-17) one of the hottest teams in the NBA.
Bench play was among the many keys weighing in the C's favor on Wednesday against the Suns who have now lost 11 in a row on the road. Here are some other keys outlined prior to the game, and how they eventually played out. 
WHAT TO LOOK FOR: The days of scoring a ton of points seems to be a thing of the past in Phoenix. They come into tonight's game averaging 96.4 points per game which ranks 16th in the league. They haven't finished outside of the top 10 in scoring since the 2003-2004 season.
WHAT WE SAW: Phoenix continued its season-long trend of not scoring a lot of points. Their 79-point total on Wednesday was the 10th time in their last 11 games in which they failed to score 100 or more points.

MATCHUP TO WATCH:  Brandon Bass vs Luis Scola: Bass isn't scoring as much as he did last season, but his defense and rebounding has been solid during Boston's current three-game winning streak. Scola is a high-energy, multiple-effort kind of player so keeping him off the boards - especially the offensive ones - will be key for the C's.
WHAT WE SAW: Scola got his share of points (16) and rebounds (8) but there was never a point in the game in which his play was making a huge difference or impact on the game. Bass (6 points, 5 rebounds) didn't have a huge game scoring the ball himself. But his defense more than made up for whatever he didn't get done offensively.

PLAYER TO WATCH: It seems playing against the Boston Celtics brings out the best in Marcin Gortat, a player the C's may have some interest in as we get closer to the trading deadline. In the three games he has played against Boston since joining the Suns, he has averaged 18.7 points and 14 rebounds while shooting 56 percent from the field.
WHAT WE SAW: Gortat did what Gortat always does against Boston and that's leave the game with a double-double under his belt. It was essentially just another day at the office against the Celtics for Gortat who had 12 points and 14 rebounds while shooting 6-for-12 from the field.

STAT TO TRACK: The third quarter has been decisively positive for the C's lately, and quite devastating to the Suns. In its last three wins, Boston outscored its opponents in the third quarter each game, by an average of 12.3 points per game. Meanwhile, Phoenix is giving up a league-high 25.6 points in the third quarter this season.
WHAT WE SAW: The Celtics' string of dominating the third quarter came to an end. Fortunately for them, the same can not be said for their winning streak. Despite being outscored 23-14 in the third, Boston's ability to dominate the second and fourth quarters would prove to be the difference on Wednesday night. 

Contact Us