Celtics Fourth Quarter Dominance Returning At Right Time

The Celtics silenced any whispers of a 3-2 deficit in their first round series agains Chicago with a scintillating showing in the fourth quarter of Game 5.

Many have assessed the argument that the Boston Celtics never really appeared to be a team deserving of a number-one overall seed throughout the season.

More from Hardwood Houdini

However, if you take fourth quarter statistics alone, there is little doubt that Boston was one of the most commanding teams in the NBA. The Celtics led the league in points per game in the fourth quarter, dropping an average of 27.9 points in the final 12 minutes of each outing.

By comparison, the Chicago Bulls, Boston’s first round opponent, ranked just 27th in the NBA in fourth quarter scoring with 24.7 points per contest. The disparity in fourth quarter effectiveness was placed on full display in Wednesday’s night’s Game 5, as the Celtics garnered a critical 108-97 win behind a supreme display in the game’s concluding stanza to take a 3-2 lead in the series.

Entering the fourth quarter, the Bulls appeared to be inching past Boston’s efforts. Shooting guard Jimmy Butler showed signs of an eruption, hitting a buzzer-beating three pointer at the conclusion of the third quarter to hand his team a 81-79 lead. The Celtics could not seem to put the ball in the bottom of the net despite finding holes in Chicago’s armor, as visions of Game 1 flashed in the minds of the sellout TD Garden crowd.

However, as soon as the fourth kicked off, the ability to prevail in tight situations which allowed the Celtics to clinch the Eastern Conference’s best record emerged. Boston doubled the Bulls’ offensive effort over the last 10 minutes, scoring 24 points to Chicago’s measly 12. The Celtics made all 10 of their free throw attempts, turned the ball over just twice, committing a harmless quartet of fouls, and hit seven of their 17 field goal attempts.

By comparison, the Bulls simply imploded. Butler was unable to find his niche despite being guarded by the undersized Avery Bradley. Although Butler has five inches and over 50 pounds on the All-NBA Defensive First Team selectee, Bradley limited him to just two points on a horrific 1-of-5 shooting while guarding him.

Apr 26, 2017; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley (0) lays the ball in the basket during the first half in game five of the first round of the 2017 NBA Playoffs against the Chicago Bulls at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports /

While Butler’s 20 percent shooting percentage against Bradley is impressive, it is the fact that Butler took just five shot attempts over this span that is the most telling. The Texas product hounded Butler over the course of the final quarter, preventing him from catching the ball in a lucrative scoring position at all costs.

Instead, the rock was in the hands of Dwyane Wade and Isaiah Canaan for much of the fourth. Despite his past playoff heroics, Wade was ineffective in leading the Bulls, making just one of his four field goals while committing a pair of turnovers in 8.4 fourth quarter minutes. Canaan also added two turnovers to harm Chicago’s cause, hitting just two shots over 11 minutes.

This led to the Bulls scuffling to field any resemblance of a proficient offensive attack over the last 10 minutes of the contest. Chicago shot just 4-for-13 over this tumultuous span, turning the ball over five times, attempting just four free throws, and committing eight fouls.

The defensive intensity of the Celtics translated to the offensive side of the floor. Point guard Isaiah Thomas appeared lost in the first half of the contest, going 1-for-6 from the field. However, the NBA’s second-leading fourth quarter scorer during the regular season (9.8 points per game) reclaimed the final stanza magic that transformed the 2016-17 season into a magical one.

Thomas fared 3-of-3 from two-point range and 5-of-5 from the free throw line in the last 11 minutes, scoring 11 points while grabbing three rebounds amongst the trees, dishing out an assist, an preventing himself from coughing up a single turnover.

Halfway through the quarter, Thomas began his takeover mission. With 5:40 remaining, he took a handoff from center Al Horford at the top of the key and curled around to his left around Canaan before stopping on a dime eight feet from the basket. As Horford had rolled to the rim to limit Robin Lopez’ ability to help on Thomas, the King in the Fourth took advantage of his extra space by rising up and lifting in a two-handed runner to give Boston a 96-89 lead.

Less than a minute later, Thomas worked his magic again to get to the free throw line. After a hard screen by center Kelly Olynyk in the backcourt freed him from the suffocating pressure applied by Canaan, he ran into a waiting Nikola Mirotic at the top of the key. Thomas then blew past Mirotic to the right side of the rim by utilizing his patented hesitation move, drawing a foul from Lopez before flying into the crowd’s embrace being the basket stanchion.

Next: Boston Celtics are winning with clutch play

Unsurprisingly, Thomas then hit a pair of foul shots, giving Boston a 100-89 advantage that they would not relinquish.

Home/Celtics News