Boston Celtics Blow Lead to Dallas Mavericks
Everything started so well. In fact, the Boston Celtics had the best start to a game of the season. Avery Bradley was lights out on offense and the Celtics were generating the turnovers we have come to expect. The Celtics built an 18 point lead in the first half and things could not have looked better. Until, things progressively got worse and worse and even after they recaptured a 10 point fourth quarter lead, they could not hold off the Dallas Mavericks.
The game had all its flow shattered by an incredible amount of inconsistent whistles and the Celtics never recovered. The Celtics never recaptured the pace and intensity that led to a three game winning streak.
The Celtics fell into a shooting slump and could not generate enough steals or second chance opportunities to make up for it. The Celtics can’t win them all, especially against western conference playoff teams, but this one was firmly in their grasp.
Avery Bradley got in too much foul trouble to have a great impact in the second half and even though he had a great overall game, Jared Sullinger let the team down with two wide open misses, one from three and one at the rim, with the team down by 5 late in the fourth.
Nov 18, 2015; Boston, MA, USA; Dallas Mavericks center Zaza Pachulia (27) defends against Boston Celtics center Jared Sullinger (7) in the second half at TD Garden. Dallas defeated the Celtics 106-102. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
The Celtics looked as good as ever in the first half, but regressed back to the team they were at the beginning of the season. Consistency is going to be key for the Celtics and the good news is that they have a great opportunity to bounce back and begin a new run with back to backs against the Brooklyn Nets.
The Celtics won the turnover battle and they won the rebounding battle but it was close. The Celtics did not get enough of an edge in those areas to make up for yet another porous shooting game. 30% from three point range is starting to get really tired for the Celtics and in a game when they really needed to hit some shots to win, they went cold.
The most telling stat for the Celtics may be their transition points. The Celtics have depended more than anyone else on setting the pace in transition off of steals and they finished the game with an underwhelming 5 points in transition. After the first half, the Celtics never established a strong pace and they lacked the necessary ball movement to score enough points.
The Celtics did a great job of contesting shots in the first half but wound up allowing the Mavericks to shoot over 50%. Led by the ageless wonder, the Mavericks had 4 players above 14 points and Raymond Felton was the only player to really struggle shooting the ball.
The Mavericks shot well and, of course, they got to the line. 35 free throw attempts is one of the biggest reasons the Celtics lost this one as they allowed the Mavericks to get back into the game the easiest way possible.
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Fortunately, the Celtics have a significantly easier stretch over the next few weeks than the previous four games. The Celtics will play some challenging teams but there are many more games that they should be expected to win. The Celtics have managed to catch up to the Raptors and they should be able to keep up their recent success and there is no better way to start it out than two games against the Nets.