Ouch

[Rich Davies <rich@daviesdesign.com>]

I just wish they'd get a complete game together. If it's not the offense,
it's the defense. If it's not the defense, it's the bench. If it's not the
bench, it's Paul Pierce. If it's not Paul, it's the refs.

Whatever. Crappy game by everyone not named Walker or Pierce (and even
that's debatable). The bright side is, they still almost won despite such a
poor showing. The down side is Mr. little-Kidd-getting-a-free-ride and Mr.
Thug Martin holding a trashfest at center court immediately following the
game.

The other downside is that it appears that Mr. SKittles has awakened.
Hopefully it's only for this game, but boy, he hurt today.

As far as the refs go, I wouldn't mind the star treatment for Jason so much
if they would give the same crap at the other end, and they're not.

Who was it on the list that said that Stern wanted each series to go 2-2,
and then allow them to play out? Whoever you are, will you give me a call, I
want to talk to you about next year's Superbowl. :-)

I don't fault Pierce for missing the biggie FT at the end. Lot of pressure
in arguably his first taste at this level. But I do fault him for his
earlier ones--not to mention those missed by other C's. Obviously, we hit
even 3 more freebies, we win.

And players 3-12 don't get off the hook, either. If they hit even 40%, we
win.

I'm a little worried now. The HairNets showed a lot of poise today coming
back after such a collapse 2 days ago. They're gonna be pretty cocky in Game
5, and despite the fact that the C's made it game in the 4th, I don't know
if they'll be able to do it on the road for a 3rd straight game (if they
fall behind early). Fortunately, I don't have to play. :-)

For Game 5:
- Pierce has got to be quicker when he gets the ball, either driving or
passing
- They've got to cover Jason's outlets, and stop worrying about Jason
himself. He can't beat you with his scoring alone.
- Somebody else has to step up; Kenny, Battie, Rogers, Delk--somebody!
- Free throws. Gotta hit'em. They've hurt us in at least 2 games in this
series.
- Bring the intensity. It's been missing for large stretches of every game
save Game 2.

I still feel that the Celts are able to knock them off, but it's going to
require focus and intensity and aggressiveness. A nice clothesline on Kidd
couldn't hurt either! :-)

Rich D.