Stepping Up
Boston,Mass – Even without their most important defensive player, the Boston Celtics came away with an impressive victory over the Eastern Conference’s top team.
If they want to earn the top seed in the East for the second straight year, they may have to fend off another contender, too.
Oddsmakers from Online Sportsbook SPORTSBETTING have made the Celtics -4.5 point spread favorites for today’s game against the Magic. Current NBA Public Betting Information shows that 64% of more than 242 bets for this game have been placed on the Celtics -4.5.
The Celtics can move to 3-0 this season against the Orlando Magic in Saturday’s matinee at the TD Banknorth Garden, and they’ll look for another strong inside effort against Dwight Howard despite still being without Kevin Garnett.
Missing Garnett for the last seven games as the reigning NBA defensive player of the year recovers from a knee strain, Boston had been struggling going into Friday night’s matchup with Cleveland. Of their previous four games, the Celtics lost to the Los Angeles Clippers and Detroit while their two wins were close ones against sub-.500 teams.
But the Celtics (49-14) overwhelmed the Cavs inside in their 105-94 win, holding a 58-22 edge in points in the paint thanks largely to reserve forward Leon Powe’s season-high 20 points on 9-of-11 shooting and 11 rebounds.
Powe stepped in after Glen Davis, Garnett’s replacement in the starting lineup, was ejected for a flagrant foul, and he may need to do it again with Davis possibly suspended for Sunday’s game pending a league review.
"I know there’s a lot depending on me coming in and playing well," Powe said. "It’s way more than just a game. We take this as our pride game."
While the young big man trio of Powe, Davis and Kendrick Perkins combined for 40 points and 21 rebounds, Paul Pierce added 29 points and nine assists in a key victory for the Celtics as they jockey for position with the Cavs for the East’s top seed.
That prospect appears even more important considering the teams are a combined 53-6 at home, with the home team having won the last 15 games between them.
"I know we’re close, and at the end of the season they’ll tell us," Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. "Both teams are really good, and really good teams don’t lose at home. That’s why it’s really important for us to get this."
But the Magic (45-16) may object to often being overlooked in the race for the East’s best record, as they stand only two games behind Boston in the loss column. A road win over the Celtics would earn them some attention, but they’ve already lost twice this season to the defending champions, including an ugly 107-88 defeat in Boston on Dec. 1.
With point guard Jameer Nelson out, Orlando had struggled through a 6-6 stretch from Feb. 2-27, but the team has now won three straight thanks to a series of fourth-quarter comebacks.
"We want to win as many games as we can coming up into the playoffs," Howard said. "We want to be rolling. We want to get hot once the playoffs come. We start now."
The Magic have outscored opponents 91-54 in the final 12 minutes over the last three games, erasing deficits each time. They trailed by eight in the fourth quarter Friday night against New Jersey, but finished on an 18-7 run in their 105-102 win.
"I think it’s sending the wrong message to our team," Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy said. "And I think we need to bounce back to reality a little bit."
Howard, second in the NBA with 48 double-doubles, had 26 points and 15 rebounds Friday, and now he’ll try to take advantage of a Boston frontcourt missing Garnett after struggling in both meetings this season. He averaged 12.5 points on 9-of-22 shooting in those two losses.
Orlando, one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the league, made 25.0 percent (12-of-48) from beyond the arc in those games, with the team averaging 84.0 points.
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Posted: 3/8/09 3:00AM ET
