Tough defense put stop to slide

["Stephen Beauregard" <sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Tough defense put stop to slide
By Peter May, Globe Staff, 11/10/2003

Raef LaFrentz summed it up pretty well. "I never thought I'd be on a team that
held the Sacramento Kings to [82] points," the Celtics big man said following
last night's rewarding 91-82 victory.

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LaFrentz saw the Kings at their best in his days in Dallas and Denver. He saw
them put on a clinic in the first four minutes last night, when Sacramento
opened a 15-2 lead and was on pace to score 82 points before the end of the
first half. He saw the cuts, the screens, the open looks, the makes, and, he
must have thought to himself, "This could be a long night." As he later put
it, "That was classic Sacramento Kings basketball."

But something happened to the Kings on their way to what looked like an easy
victory. Their offense went into vapor lock. They rushed their shots. The
Celtics' defense ratcheted things up and held the supposedly unstoppable Kings
to a mere 37 points on 30.4 percent shooting in the second half. And won,
going away.

It's probably safe to say the Kings won't have too many games like this. It's
also safe to say the Kings' offensive seizure wasn't totally self-inflicted,
although the coaches might disagree as to the extent: Jim O'Brien -- not much;
Rick Adelman -- a lot. It is safe to say this was a huge win over a quality
opponent for the Celtics, who snapped a three-game losing streak and managed
to finally finish off a team.

They held the Kings to season lows in points and field goal percentage (35.6),
which is especially newsworthy given that Sacramento entered the game
averaging 106 points, second best in the NBA, and shooting 47.8 percent, tops
in the league. The Kings also entered the game averaging a league-best 28.4
assists per game (and still managed 26, all but 2 in the first three
quarters). They have no excuses; they did not play Saturday, they were coming
off a loss in New York Friday, and they've been around long enough to know the
drill. They still got whacked. How does 4-of-22 shooting in the fourth quarter
sound?

Suffice it to say the Celtics turned in an across-the-board effort at both
ends, which is what it's going to take, especially against the elite teams.
They played terrific defense, particularly in the second half, and were still
going strong at the end. They'd have won by 20 if the game lasted another five
minutes.

And they got a much better balance on offense than last Friday's
Pierce-apalooza, with four players in double figures, the shots more evenly
distributed and -- this is huge -- 50 points in the paint.

There were heroes galore for the Celtics, which is why O'Brien was a most
happy fella. LaFrentz played his best game as a Celtic, according to the
coach. He had 9 points, 9 rebounds, and a block in 23 minutes. Vin Baker (18
points, 13 rebounds, 2 blocks) turned in another solid effort; his turnaround
continues to be one of the more remarkable stories of the season. Paul Pierce
was much more discriminating when he had the ball. Mike James had four steals.
Old reliable Eric Williams returned after a three-game absence and energized
everyone.

But, for O'Brien, the defense never rests and always comes first. And what his
team did to Sacramento bears noting, because the Kings, as LaFrentz noted,
almost never have games like this. Adelman was careful to credit the Celtics'
defense and their upgraded intensity in the second half, but, at the same
time, he noted, "We knew what they were going to do. And we knew how we were
going to play against them. And then we didn't do it."

OK, how about some more numbers. The Kings' 3-point shooting percentage of
42.9 entering the game was better than the field goal percentage of 16 other
teams. In their first five games, they had shot less than 50 percent in only
one of them (a blowout loss in Denver) and they are shooting 51 percent in
Arco Arena. They'd scored 100 points in four of their first five games. Peja
Stojakovic entered the game averaging 27.8 points on 53.3 percent shooting.
(Hounded by Kedrick Brown, Stojakovic finished with 13 points).

They may not be the omnipotent Kings of a couple of years ago, but they still
boast a powerhouse lineup. (The defensive numbers, meanwhile, are horrific,
which is one reason they're only 3-3.) In a seven-game series against the
Celtics, you'd still take the Kings and spend the winnings before you even saw
them, even without Chris Webber.

But, for one night, the Celtics were clearly the better team. They haven't
been able to say that the last six times they played the Kings -- and they may
not get to say it again for a while. But the way they won last night,
rendering a potent team almost impotent, is a tremendously encouraging sign.

It drives home the message -- defense uber alles -- that O'Brien has been
preaching for three years. And it made LaFrentz one very surprised guy when he
picked up the final box score.

Thanks,

Steve
sb@xxxxxxxxxxxx