20150323-BOSBKN

Boston Celtics

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NEW YORK – With eight minutes left to play, Evan Turner needed five rebounds for a triple-double. It seemed unlikely he’d grab them before time expired.

About 20 minutes after the game was over, Turner had his second career triple-double in the bag, and a gold grill in his mouth as he talked to reporters. Given the 110-91 win over the Nets in Brooklyn, the mood in the locker room was light.

Turner told the media that the he was wearing the grill as a gag to make his teammates laugh, and explained that he wasn’t aware of his potential triple-double until someone clued him in from courtside.

“I heard a guy in the crowd, me and Tyler (Zeller) were talking, and he was like ‘Zeller give Evan one more rebound don’t touch the ball’ and (Zeller) was like, ‘I guess you’ve got a triple-double,’” Turner said.  “So I boxed somebody out to go get the ball and that’s what occurred.”

Turner finished the game with 19 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists, and just two turnovers. He was one of six Celtics who scored in double figures, mixing up his attack with baseline fade-aways and strong takes to the rack.

Turner, who notched the second triple-double of his season and of his career, joins some elite company in Celtics history. Larry Bird (69), Rajon Rondo (32), Antoine Walker (13) and Paul Pierce (10) are the only other Celtics who've notched multiple triple-doubles in their career with the franchise.

As for Turner, he appears to be improving as the season progresses, and seems to be at his best when he’s got the ball in his hands.

“I grew up playing with the ball in my hands and it’s been more advantageous for me and that’s why I got drafted so high; I was playing the situation,” Turner said. “Once again, my teammates made a lot of shots and a lot of great plays and they made me look better.”

Brad Stevens talked about Turner’s contributions afterward, and noted that he was finally comfortable after playing for four different coaches in four seasons.

“He knows how to play and every night he fills the box score – maybe not to that level,” Stevens said. “He was really good with the ball tonight. He was making great decisions off of the pick and roll. He was aggressive from the start.”

Not only was the scoring balanced for the Celtics, but seven different players grabbed five ore more rebounds. It was a total team effort that gave the Celtics a much-needed win in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

With the night over and the Charlotte Hornets taking a loss, the Celtics will wake up in eighth place in the East. They return home on Wednesday to host the Miami Heat, who are in the seventh spot as of Monday night.

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Turner Turns in Second Triple-Double as C's Roll

RE: Evan Turner's recent stretch of play:

RE: If he knew he was close to a triple-double in the fourth:

RE: If Boston's offense allows him to succeed:

RE: If he is confident about the Celtics' ability to respond to adversity:

RE: Brooklyn's penchant for losing at home:

RE: Having trouble guarding the pick and roll:

RE: Brooklyn losing momentum after the first quarter:

RE: If the Nets were just missing shots or if the Celtics' defense was too tough to overcome:

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That's What He Said - Celtics at Nets

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Photos: Celtics vs. Nets - Mar. 23, 2015

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Kelly Olynyk has been taking some flak of late for his poor shooting.  He snapped out of his funk at just the right time Monday night in Brooklyn.

Olynyk scored seven straight points for the Celtics from the 9:29 mark to the 8:19 mark of the fourth, providing the Celtics with a 16-point lead over their hosts.  The first bucket of the run came via a flush after Olynyk caught a pretty dish from teammate Evan Turner.  The big man then canned a 3 pointer and followed that up with a tip-in basket to take the score to 96-80.

That 16-point lead stood as the largest of the game.  Boston controlled the final eight minutes of the night, never allowing the Nets to slice the lead to fewer than nine points.

Olynyk’s personal spurt brought his point total to 18, which was his final tally on the night.  He can take solace in the fact that he snapped out of his slump just in time to propel the C’s to a 110-91 win.

There will be much more content on Celtics.com regarding Evan Turner and his triple-double, but that doesn’t mean we could skip out on calling him the Key Player of the Game.

Turner was fantastic from start to finish, notching the second triple-double both of his season and career.  He tallied 19 points on the game, falling one point short of Avery Bradley’s total for the team high.  He also dished out a game-high 12 assists to go along with a game-high 10 boards.

Here’s how much better Turner was than nearly every other teammate: his 12 assists were at least eight more than every other Celtic, and his 10 boards were at least three more than every other Celtic.  Oh, and did we mention that he did all of this while committing only two turnovers?

As you might imagine, Brad Stevens chose to leave Turner on the floor for most of the night.  He logged 40-plus minutes of playing time and Boston outscored Brooklyn by 19 points during those minutes.

Evan Turner on if he knew he was bordering on a triple-double during the fourth quarter.

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Ford Keys to the Game: Celtics 110, Nets 91

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Although their playoff chances didn't look good less than two weeks ago, the resilient Brooklyn Nets have played themselves back into contention in the Eastern Conference.

If things continue to play out in their favor Monday night, the Nets could end up tied for the final spot in the East by dealing the visiting Boston Celtics their longest losing streak since late December.

Brooklyn had been left for dead in the playoff hunt after a five-game skid dropped it 3 1/2 games out of eighth place in the weak East on March 11. The Nets, however, have since won four of five to revive their hopes.

Following Saturday's 123-111 win at Indiana, the Nets (25-38) moved a bit closer Sunday when Boston suffered a 105-97 overtime loss to visiting Detroit. They now have a chance to draw even with eighth-place Charlotte with a win and if Indiana loses at home against Houston and the Hornets fall in Chicago on Monday.

"We're running out of games, so they're all important," coach Lionel Hollins said. "You want to win every game."

Brook Lopez has been leading the charge, including 26 points and four blocks Saturday. Bojan Bogdanovic added 21 points on 8-of-8 shooting and Brooklyn hit a season-high 61.3 percent against one of the league's top defensive clubs.

"We controlled the game from the first minute to the last minute," said Bogdanovic, who has scored 17.8 per game in his past four. "We're going to have to continue to do stuff if we're going to make the playoffs."

Lopez also put up 32 points, 18 rebounds and five blocks in Friday's 129-127 triple-overtime win over visiting Milwaukee. The veteran center is averaging 18.0 points and 10.1 boards while shooting 54.7 percent over his last nine games. However, he's totaled 14 points and six rebounds in his two matchups with Boston (30-39) this season.

The Celtics were tied for seventh in the East after a five-game winning streak, but they've fallen out of position after struggling defensively in Wednesday's 122-118 loss at Oklahoma City and shooting 37.8 percent in their past two defeats.

"These are the ones that hurt," Jae Crowder said after scoring 19 on Sunday. "We have to have these games."

Boston hasn't dropped four in a row since Dec. 21-27. The Nets handed the Celtics one of those losses Dec. 26 when Jarrett Jack had 27 points and made a jumper in the lane with 28 seconds left in a 109-107 road victory.

Joe Johnson, who scored 14 on Saturday, has totaled 44 points in his last two against the Celtics at Barclays Center.

Avery Bradley scored 21 and Tyler Zeller had 18 points to help Boston take a 2-1 lead in the season series with an 89-81 victory in Brooklyn on Jan. 7. They also rolled to a 121-105 home win in the season opener for both clubs Oct. 29.

Bradley has been a difficult matchup, averaging 20.6 points and hitting 14 of 28 from long range in his last five meetings.

Marcus Smart will be back after serving his one-game suspension for punching San Antonio's Matt Bonner in the groin Friday. Smart had scored 15.3 per game while hitting 10 of 18 3-point attempts over the previous three.

Isaiah Thomas, averaging 21.4 points in 10 games with Boston, isn't ready to return from a bruised lower back.

20150323‑BOSBKN

Turner Turns in Second Triple-Double as C's Roll

That's What He Said - Celtics at Nets

Photos: Celtics vs. Nets - Mar. 23, 2015

Ford Keys to the Game: Celtics 110, Nets 91

3/23 Game Preview: Celtics at Nets