Mar 1, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; Golden State Warriors power forward David Lee (10) shoots the ball against Boston Celtics power forward Jeff Green (8) and power forward Kevin Garnett (5) during the first half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Celtics start the month of March on the right track as they defeat the Golden State Warriors 94-86. Boston played great team defense throughout tonight’s game, and limited Stephen Curry’s chances of getting an open shot. For the Celtics this was a great team win from top to bottom. Everyone who played contributed, whether it was on defense or offense and even players like Jordan Crawford had a hand in helping Boston get the win tonight. Moving forward, this is something the team can build off of and maybe tackle every opponent in the same way as they did against the Warriors.

Golden State had no answer for Boston’s pick and roll offense. Chris Wilcox, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce got to the basket with little to no resistance, and with the Warriors lack of shot blocking at the center position, it was easy for smaller players to get to the rim. Because the Warriors don’t have much height and the Celtics spread the floor so well, Pierce was making some impressive moves to the hoop and finishing with the and-1 on a few occasions.

If it wasn’t for Jeff Green tonight, the Warriors could have stolen tonight’s game away from the Celtics. Green, who finished with 18 points, 10 in the fourth quarter alone, made some very difficult shots to beat the twenty-four second shot clock, and when he was aggressive no one was going to stop him when he got into the paint. When he gets in a rhythm and is in the shoot first, pass second mentality, he plays with more confidence and usually makes more shots. That’s exactly what we saw from him tonight, and after taking some hard hits, he deserves a few days of rest as the Celtics prepare to take on the Philadelphia 76ers next Tuesday.

The real key to the Celtics victory tonight was the defense they played on Stephen Curry. Avery Bradley locked him down, forcing him to pass instead of taking and making shots. When Bradley got into foul trouble, other players stepped up and kept him at bay for most of the night. Curry did finish with 25 points, but 10 of those were from the free throw line. Boston forced the Warriors to have other players try beating the Celtics, but with most of their points coming from Curry, they had no answer for Boston’s evenly distributed offense.

The Celtics now get a four day break before they take on the Philadelphia 76ers and Indiana Pacers on Tuesday and Wednesday night. After tonight, Boston deserves the time off and this will also give the team time to practice to get Jordan Crawford and Terrence Williams acclimated into the system. Tonight was a great team victory, and if they can play like they did against the Warriors for the rest of the season, they’ll start accumulating wins and possibly get a higher seed for the playoffs.

December 29, 2012; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry (30) dribbles the ball during the fourth quarter against the Boston Celtics at ORACLE Arena. The Warriors defeated the Celtics 101-83. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Celticcs will take on the Golden State Warriors  and try to tie the season series against them tonight. The Warriors have been shooting the lights out in their last three games the Warriors shot 52.3% from three point range.

The Warriors have been scorching in the past three games. The only problem is that they haven’t been able to defend anyone. Over the past three games they’ve scored 106 points per 100 possessions but they’ve also allowed 108 points per 100 possessions on the defensive end. That’s why they haven’t been able to win.

Luckily for the C’s they’re catching the Warriors in the midst of this defensive slump. The Warriors are always better defensively at home, but tonight they’ll be in the Garden. The Celtics should have no problem scoring against these guys.

Shooting One: The Three Keys

The keys for the Celtics tonight are on the defensive part of the floor. They’ll have to stop these guys if they want to win. They aren’t keeping up with Curry and the Warriors offensively. Now, lets get into the keys:

• The Celtics have to stay with Stephen Curry at all times. The Knicks learned this lesson the hard way when Curry embarrassed them for 54 points. They were letting him shoot the three ball and then he caught fire. If Curry catches fire from deep, you aren’t stopping him. Let him take the ball to the rim. Curry is only shooting 58% at the rim. That’s down from the league average.
• The Celtics have to watch out for the Warriors pick and role attack. The Warriors are going to kill them if they don’t guard the role man while fighting over the screen. That means that the help is often going to have to come from off the wing or from the side. The Celtics have to be judicious with who they leave because the most of the Warriors squad lights things up from deep.
• The Celtics are going to have to watch out for Jarrett Jack coming off of the bench. He’s a leading candidate in the sixth man of the year conversation and he’s going to be hard to stop. The Warriors are going to throw him out there with two shooters in Curry and Klay Thompson–the C’s have to do everything in their power to stop that lineup.

Feb 24, 2013; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots against Minnesota Timberwolves power forward Derrick Williams (7) in the second quarter at Target Center. Warriors won 100-99. Mandatory Credit: Greg Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Tomorrow night, Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors fans get a treat as they witness two up and coming guards, Stephen Curry and Avery Bradley. Both come into the game with completely different mindsets and games. Curry is offensive oriented, while Bradley puts defense first above everything else. In the past we’ve been accustomed to seeing Rajon Rondo face other elite point guards in the league, but this time it’s Avery Bradley’s turn to face up against another rising guard in Stephen Curry.

Last night against the New York Knicks, Curry scored a career high 54 points, shooting 18 for 28 from the field, and knocking down 11 of 13 three point shots. Unfortunately for the Warriors, they came up four points short losing 109-105 to the Knicks. Curry is a powder keg, once he catches fire there is no stopping him. His pull up three’s in transition last night were lethal, and his quickness was just unstoppable.

Curry has scored 92 points combined in his last two games scoring 38 against the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday. If there is anyone who can stop this offensive explosion it would be Avery Bradley. Bradley, who is known to shut down some of the best guards in the league, probably isn’t phased by Curry’s recent dominance on the floor. Just like Rondo, Bradley plays harder against better players to show the league what he’s got.

Tomorrow night, something has to give, either Curry get’s shut down, or Bradley gets beaten on defense. Before the season, this would have been the most unlikely matchup to get any attention whatsoever, but both players have been playing great as of late and it will be enjoyable to see them battle it out throughout the entire game. Tomorrow also holds some significant importance to their respective teams as both the Boston Celtics and Golden State Warriors are fighting for playoff spots in their conferences. It should be a great game in every aspect, but I will be focused on this one matchup as either player could be the key to a victory for their teams.

Feb. 22, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley (0) drives the ball during the game against the Phoenix Suns in the first half at US Airways Center. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Stewart-USA TODAY Sports