Boston, we have a problem

This was a bad loss for a number of reasons. First off, the Rockets were missing 3 of their top rotation players in Martin, Ariza, and Battier and the Celtics had their full starting squad.  The fact that the Rockets aren't juggernauts with their full squad makes it that much worse. Second, is that the Celtics didn't even play that badly.  They had strong contributions off the bench from TA and Rasheed. Tony has played really well in limited time lately and has frankly outplayed Marquis. Sheed grabbed 8 boards and only chucked up two 3's. He had his first back to back double figure games since February. Momma Wallace must have been at the game again.

Pierce had a stellar game as well with 27 points. However, he lost the game for the Celtics with that terrible shot at the end of the 4th.  He does this all the time so I'm not sure why I'm even surprised anymore. I think one of the strangest things in sports is the inability for NBA players to get good shots at the end of quarters.  Why do they wait until there are 5 seconds left to make their move? What about having a chance to get an offensive board? You would think they would go over this more in practice.

Rondo was spectacular as usual breaking the Celtics record for assists and also putting in 23 points. He's simply a joy to watch and my favorite player to watch since Michael Jordan. Yup, I said it. Perk had a solid game as well and could have used a few more touches down low. Sheldon also played well again despite only 9 minutes of action. Ray was a no show as expected. It seems only 1 or 2 of the "Big 3" can be good in the same game.

The Rockets were undermanned but scrappy. Chase Budinger did his best Larry Bird impression going 6-8 from behind the arc.  Aaron Brooks dropped 30 on us including some clutch shots in crunch time.  Luis Scola chipped in 27 points and 11 boards as well. Knicks cast off Jordan hill was impressive, which is further proof of the disaster that is the New York Knicks.  I have to hand it to this Rockets team. They wanted it more and it showed.

The Celtics don't want it as bad as other teams. Their trademark the last 2 years has been defense and that has been lacking.  Offensively they've been lights out the last 2 games but that doesn't matter if you keep allowing teams to score in the triple digits every game. They used to intimidate teams on the defensive side of the ball but that's gone now. 15 losses in their home building already is unacceptable. Now let's go beat Lebron on Easter Sunday and turn this around!