10:04 - Drat! The Hawks have had open looks on 4 possessions to open the period, but have misfired four times. Not much you can do about that. 51-40 Celtics.9:00 - The Hawks are still struggling offensively, but one thing they are doing well is crash the offensive boards. Both baskets they've had so far have come via an offensive rebound.
7:47 - Gut check time. The Celtics are taking advantage of the Hawks shooting woes, and a Ray Allen three just gave Boston its biggest lead of the game, 60-44. Boston is such a good defensive team, watching them up close it is really impressive how hard they make you work for every single shot. So far in this half they've forced 3 turnovers leading to 7 points, which is the difference in the halftime deficit and where the score stands now.6:15 - I guess it's Jesus Shuttlesworth's time to shine. Ray Allen picked up where Paul Pierce left off in the first half, scoring 7 straight for Boston to give Boston a 67-48 lead.
5:15 - Mike Bibby gets a clean look at a 3 and buries it - we need a few more of those.
2:54 - This is a time for the Hawks to make their run. The Celtics have (finally) gone slightly cold, and a couple Atlanta baskets in a row could make this a much tighter affair. As I say that, Joe nails a jumper to cut it to 12 at 67-55.
1:04 - It's interesting watching the game within the game sometimes. Rajon Rondo came down the floor three possessions ago and given the opportunity to shoot a jumper, promptly fired an airball. The next trip down the Hawks gave him some space, and this time he made them pay. The next trip he was afforded the same space, and once again he made the Hawks pay. For the record, I am fine with almost any shot taken by a Celtics player not named Garnett, Pierce, or Allen, but on those two possessions it didn't quite work out.
0:00 - Rondo hits another to end the quarter, and the Celtics are back up 18 at 73-55. Atlanta scored only 15 points in the quarter. They've certainly got their work cut out for them in the final period, especially with so many different Celtics players doing damage offensively. But you gotta believe, right?
SIDENOTE: It must be nice to be David Ortiz. Several of the Red Sox players are on hand for this game, but no one gets a response from the crowd quite like Big Papi. During the timeout between the 3rd and 4th quarters, the Celtics mascot did a trampoline dunk with an assist from Ortiz, who stood under the basket and held the ball in the air for "Lucky" to snare. Definitely a big reaction from the crowd.
